Ella's Story: Shattered
by Metal Flowers
Summary: "Ella is the great Maximum Ride's sister. She's normal. She's ordinary. She's a placeholder. But now she's not. She's something new, something powerful. But just remember something, if you lean to hard on something, it'll shatter. Even Ella will.
1. Wing Dream

**First chapter of Ella's story: Shattered, and I'm feeling hyped up! Here it is!  
Without any further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

I woke up in a white hospital bed and I thought I was dreaming. I often have a nightmare that starts out like this. It's the wing dream.

Everyone thinks I'm just Ella. Sweet, loveable Ella who wants what she has and has what she wants. But I want what I can't have. It's not a boy or am expensive piece of jewelry. I want to be better than my sister. I'm not content to being compared to Max my whole life.

So every night, I live out my secret desire. I dream that I'm flying. I dream that I have wings. Ella Martinez, the pretty girl with the chocolate brown eyes, wants something as petty as being just like her big sis.

But soon, I realized that this wasn't my dream. This was real. The touch of the crisp, thin sheets were to sharp. The smell of chemicals burned my nose and made me slightly dizzy. Everything I saw was white and it hurt my eyes. I could hear murmuring.

Slowly, my eyes adjusted and I saw Jeb looking at me. No, peering was a better word. He was studying my face closely.

"You sleep talk," he said suddenly.

"Okay?" I said uncertainly. Then the dream I _had _been dreaming before waking up flooded into my mind. I guess I _had_ had the wing dream last night.

"You want to be better than Maximum," he said, appraising my reaction, "And we can make this happen."

I remembered how I seemed to be brainwashed and was sent here. I was kidnapped against my will. I should be kicking and screaming right now, but at his words I felt something strange. Something I haven't had in a long time, contrary to popular belief.

I felt hope.


	2. Wings

**Here's the second chapter of Ella's story! No one writes Ellas really. Hope you guys like it!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

Jeb strapped me tighter to the cold metal table. He inserted a needle connected to an IV and I winced a bit at the sting. Ugh. Needles.

A few minutes after I was hooked up to the IV, I started to get sleepy. My limbs felt too heavy and my eyelids drooped.

"Anesthetics," Jeb explained, "It's more than most experiments get, so you're better off than most."

I couldn't move a muscle, but I think he saw the unmasked panic in my eyes before I sank into darkness. I didn't fall asleep or faint. I was still conscious, but I couldn't feel my body. It was like I was disconnected from everything outside my mind. This gave me some much needed thinking time.

One, how did I get here? I remember some bits but they were blurry. Something about Onelight. I think I was brainwashed and had ran here myself. Something like that.

Two, I was getting wings. My dream was getting fulfilled. I wouldn't just be Max's little sister. I'd be Ella. Max would be reduced to just being _my_ sister. Huh.

And three, did I really want this? I remember what being transformed into a mutant did to Ari. He got all wolfish and ugly. Not a good combination at all. And then he died really early. But wasn't that due to his expiration date?

And then I really fell asleep. A familiar dream popped into my head. The wing dream.

DREAM

_ The deepest blue of the sky surrounded me. It was the kind of blue you can only get by looking in the very middle of the sky on a summer day. The breath taking kind. I dove down and brushed my hand along a cloud. It was wet and cool, not fluffy._

_ I had black wings like Fang, but mine were better. They were bigger and the feather longer and thinner. My wings were angled and designed for speed. In my dreams, I was even faster than Max. _

_ I put on an extra burst of speed. The clouds and ground passed by in a blur. My long hair whipped around behind me and my cheeks flushed with pleasure. It was purely exhilarating. _

_ On a whim, I decided to stop flapping my wings. I tumbled forward with my momentum and then dropped like a rock. I screamed in fear and adrenaline and when I felt I would go splat, I brought out my wings. Ouch. They snapped open. _

_ Shaking my head in disappointment of myself, I launched myself into the air again. I regained speed until I couldn't hear anything. I was above the speed of sound now._

_ I was fast and strong. I was powerful. _

End Dream

I woke up and gasped. I was still strapped to the metal table, but something was different. There was something being pressed up against me and the table. Something that caused me discomfort.

I gasped again, but this time in realization. Were these wings?

Jeb was sitting beside me. My mouth curved into a smile.

"Thank you!" I said happily. Then I noticed that his mouth was twisted into a grimace.

"Sorry Ella. After attaching the wings onto you, the board has decided that you aren't a prime candidate to have them. They'll have to take them off,"

My eye twitched. What the hell? Did he say _take them off_? No. I wasn't taking them back. No way in hell.

"No," I stated simply. Jeb's eyebrow raised and he opened his mouth to speak.

"Now Ella, just because you're Maximum's sister doesn't mean-" he started but I cut him off immediately.

I literally screamed at him, "I SAID NO!"

My scream made not only Jeb to flinch, but for a small window on the wall to my left crack and shatter. Jeb looked at it in wonder. The tiny pieces of glass had fallen all around the concrete floor.

"Did I do that?" I asked in wonder. Did Ella Martinez just do that? Wow. I mean…wow. Huh.

"Y-yes. When we experimented on you, we didn't preprogram any mutations into you," he said in a tone that mirrored mine.

I experimented with my 'power' again. I screeched louder and the metal clasps that held me to the table started to crack. I kept it up and they broke further. I gave my hands a quick jerk upwards and they broke like ice instead of metal.

My eyes widened as I saw them. They looked just like they had in my dream. Big, black, and sleek. Beautiful.

"I'm not a prime candidate, huh?" I smirked at Jeb. That idiot.

_Maybe he's not the idiot_, that pesky voice said inside my head. I was used to it by now. I'd had it for years, but it rarely popped up. Since I met Max, it seemed to talk more frequently.

_Shut up_, I snarled at it and it quieted for now. Damn voice.

"You show promise," a woman with red hair said in the doorway. It was Brigid, that twenty year old that had a crush on Fang.

"Keep the wings for now," she waved her hands at me, "We'll be keeping an eye on you. Jeb will be your overseer. Don't die. That'd be such a pity if you did."

Yeah. A pity. At least it was a pity now. An hour before, it would've been a travesty, Max the great's little vulnerable sister dying. With my new wings, I wasn't that anymore. Sure, I was still related to her but I was severling my ties to her. Soon, I'd just be Ella. Ella the mutant.


	3. Ella the Hunter

**No authors note today:( Well, all the better for you! **

**Oh wait! I do have something! I'm pretty sure that there ****will**** be Eggy in this story.**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

The next days were painful to say the least. There were mazes that shock you if you slow down or stop, injections full of a semi liquid that seemed to burn the skin off, and a mutant died every other hour. I wouldn't trade it for anything, not even mom's cookies.

I mean, everyone has to go through something. Max had to go through this to become special. I could deal with it. I won't be a placeholder anymore.

Right now, I had some time to rest. They had thrown me in a cage. The bars on mine were titanium so I couldn't break them. The cage part was the thing I minded most. I mean really, a cage? Ugh.

_Be positive Ella!_ The voice instructed. This time, it was actually helpful. I need to be positive about this. Who cares if I'm in a cage? My dream was being fulfilled. With this knowledge, I sat up a little bit straighter. Brigid walked in, her heels clicked with every step.

She reached into the cage and ruffled my hair. This annoyed me. She was treating me like a child.

"How are you?" she asked in a very nice voice. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. A whitecoat's not going to be this nice without a reason.

"You're not taking my wings," I made my voice as cold as ice, something I learned from Max. I didn't have a grudge against _her_. I had a grudge against the way that she takes all the attention. That day we met? It was my birthday. We were going to go out and get ice cream, but Mom took her to the vet's office. When we finally did go, she spent it all talking about her.

Brigid made an annoyed gesture, "No, you're too powerful for that. We only revert the normal experiments. I was going to give you a choice."

She left it at that and I grew curious. If I was just a choice, then why was Brigid being so nice?

"What is it?" I asked her cautiously. If there was one thing I learned from living with the flock, it was that anything could be a trap.

"The board observed your power over a security camera. They're impressed. No other mutant has developed that power. You're unique," she took a deep breath, "They want you to be a hunter."

"A hunter?" my voice was higher with confusion. Most people speak lower, I speak higher. That's just so Ella.

"A hunter," Brigid confirmed, "Itex is putting together a group of powerful mutants. Their mission will ultimately be to either bring escaped mutants back or retire them."

I froze. They wanted me to kill the flock? She didn't specify, but I knew what she meant. The flock were the most successful mutants and they had escaped. They're causing problems and Itex wants them gone.

"I-I can't," I stuttered. I couldn't. I'm Ella, "I'm not a killer."

"No," Brigid rolled her eyes, "You're Ella. You're normal. A placeholder. And do you know what the flock is doing now that you've come here?"

"What?" I asked. Brigid was going somewhere with this, but I couldn't see where.

"They've been doing nothing- for you, anyway. They took down a Doomsday concert and poor Angel got taken down by a bomb. She was supposed to be a Hunter, you know. Angel wanted to come after you. But her Flock wasn't able to dismantle the bomb. It was their fault that she died."

Angel was dead? The Flock was at fault? Angel was my friend. I wished that she was my sister instead of Max sometimes and now she was dead. It was the Flock's fault. I wanted revenge.

"I change my mind," my voice was dark and I didn't even intend for it to come out that way, " I want to be a hunter. I want to bring down the Flock."

"Excellent," Brigid smiled wickedly. She must hate the Flock as much as I do. Fang rejected her to go out with Max. Brigid was using me as her revenge. I was fine with that.

Brigid became professional again. That almost saddened me. We were alike, Brigid and I. We wanted to be something better and we wanted revenge.

"You'll meet the rest of your team later," she said stiffly. I noticed another scientist staring at us. That must be the cause to her change of mood.

**(OC TIME! I NEED FOUR BLOODTHIRSTY PEOPLE! THREE GUYS, ONE GIRL! NO SOFTIES!)**


	4. Saw

Saw

The girl spots have all been taken! Thanks PENNYCAT and grace!

Without Further Adieu,

SAWPOV

"Saw, do you want to see the real sun?" Brigid the bitch cooed in my ear. The perfume or shampoo have used reeked.

"Don't make me rip your face off," I growled at her.

Brigid pretended to laugh off my threat, but I noticed we take a small step back. It wouldn't be the first time I injured a scientist.

"But Saw," she cooed, her voice starting to sound like a whine, "You'll be perfect for a position in the Hunters!"

"Hunters?" I narrowed my eyes at her. They sounded kind of cool but it could just be a ploy to get me out of my cage. I never do tests and they've been pretty clever at forcing me into their traps.

"It's a group of mutants that are being assembled. They'll hunt down escaped mutants." Brigid said. She was positively ecstatic that I was taking an interest.

I did love tearing apart weaker mutants, but if it meant making Brigid happy I'd stay in my cage instead.

"No," I said in a final tone. That tone by itself made scientists leave me alone most of the time.

"I'm afraid you don't understand," Brigid said in a way that I knew she had something planned that I wouldn't like, "It's imperative that you join. So imperative in fact that we're going to use extra measures to ensure that you change your mind."

Before I could register what the hell was happening, my cage was being picked up by several flyboys. So what were they going to try? Torture? Fights? I could always break everything, so they should have given up by now.

They shoved the crate into a small white room. They unlocked it and stepped out.

Cautiously, I crawled out of my cage. Where were the traps that I was suppose to fall for?

Then I realized it. I was already inside the trap. I was in a five feet by five feet room with nothing to distract me.

I was extremely claustrophobic.

After five minutes, I was slightly bothered. After ten, I felt the walls closing in on me. After fifteen, I was simply freaking out. I transformed.

Thank god for the new generation. Sometimes instead of slapping wings on a person (though winged mutant are pretty successful) they'll experiment on our brains. They make us able to control all of our minds and that unlocks special powers. Some people were elementals or something. I had a demon form.

My brown hair started to float a bit. My blue eyes turned a pitch black. My pupils either get swallowed up or disappear. My pale skin turned bone white. My fingernails grew and sharpened until they were half a foot long claws.

I raked at the walls and screamed, "LET ME OUT!"

My nails barely scratched the paint. Ugh. They has titanium enforced stuff again. Was it for me or did we get a new mutant?

An intercom system blasted out over all of the room, "You know what you have to do Saw,"

You know what? I don't even care anymore. I'll compromise with Itex! They'll get a heck of a powerful mutants to kill people and I'll get to kill people! Everyone wins! An I frikkin get OUT of this room!

"FINE!" I screamed, "I'll be a frikkin Hunter! Just let me out! I can't take it anymore!"

The door opened again and a couple Erasers (I thought they killed them off. Huh) and Brigid stood there.

Still in my demon form, I was seeing red. I launched myself at an Eraser with sandy blind hair. I ripped my nails through his throat. It was as way a cutting butter. Maybe even easier.

"You won't regret this decision Saw," Brigid said, apparently pleased with my murder, "You've made the best decision of your life."


	5. Monyka

Monyka

I feel like making another for Ella. This story has promise. Who knows? It could be the next expiration date of a family!

Without Further Adieu,

MONYKAPOV

"Little girl!" an Eraser barked at me, "Boss wants you!"

Another Eraser snickered, "It's a mystery why they want the little midget."

"If I'm such a disappointment, then ask yourself why you were the ones that were chosen to get me," I snapped, "In fact, you should open this cage right now and just get it done with!"

They stupidly listened to me and unlocked my cage. Immediately, I shifted into a taller girl with a lot more muscle. I punched the smart ass Eraser in the nose, knocking him out with one blow.

I kind of wanted to know who 'boss' was and why he wanted me. Even with my unique shape shifting ability, no one bothered with me. No one cared about the powerful twelve year old when there was a powerful seven year old in the picture. Stupid Angel. Sometimes I just wanted to snap her damn neck.

Maybe if I made myself look a bit tougher, they'd pay a bit more attention to me. I mean really, sometimes I don't even go to tests. Pain should be better than being completely forgotten!

I shifted into my favorite form. It's the one that I normally spent my time in. I gave myself longish brown hair, tan skin, and dark green eyes. Thanking god that I was able to change my clothes too, I changed my hospital gown into a dark green tank top and baggy camouflage pants.

I snapped my fingers at the other Eraser who was staring at me in fear and wonder.

"Y-you changed," he stuttered. So the 'brave' and 'powerful' Eraser was reduced to stuttering? Interesting.

"Just take me to where the 'boss' wants me to go 'Kay?" I said condescendingly. He didn't even notice my tone. He just nodded quickly and scampered off through the hallways. I easily followed him and we soon stopped in front of a tall lady with bright red hair.

"Are you... Uh...Monyka?" she asked me. She hesitated because she probably heard about my great shape shifting ability. To have a twelve year old walk up to her and say to be that powerful...

"Sure am," I said dryly, "I suppose you're the boss that those two knuckleheads were talking about?"

"Yes," the lady said, "My name is Brigid. And referring to those two 'knuckleheads', where is the other one?"

I replied without skipping a beat, "On the floor in front of my cage."

"How did he get there?" Brigid gasped. Had she not yet believed that I was as powerful as shed been informed?

"Sh-she transformed," the Eraser said quietly, "Knocked him out in one hit."

Brigid made a surprised noise and turned to me, "Is this true?"

I shrugged. I was playing nonchalant even though I was jumping for joy. Brigid had a look in her eye that meant that she was planning something for me. Hopefully that wasn't death, but...

"He was asking for it," I shrugged, "He insulted my height."

"But if you're a shape shifter, ant you just change your height?" Brigid pointed out.

"Would they expect me to be able to knock them out if they saw me like this?" I did a little twirl.

I shifted into my stronger form, "Or like this?"

"First impression count," I explained, "If you lower possible enemies' guards, you've already won half the battle."

Brigid smiled suddenly, "That proves it! You're just the girl for the Hunters!"

Without waiting for me to ask, she explained what the Hunters were.

"Mainly, you'll be tracking down the Flock. You'll have to work together to bring them back."

"Dead or alive?" I asked her.

"I'd prefer the first option, but any of the two will do." she smiled.

Wait, was she seriously offering this? A chance to prove that just because I'm small doesn't mean I'm weak, a free ticket to the outside, and permission to snap poor Angel's little neck?

"Yes please!" I smiled at her and shifted back into my normal side.


	6. Ada

**Okay, so I bent my 'only two guys and two girls' rule. It's just that I really liked Richaun's so…**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ADAPOV

I absentmindedly set my hands on fire. It didn't roar to an inferno like it usually did. That was probably due to the fact that I was in an ice chamber.

It's how they deal with fire elementals. We're the rarest out of the bunch, so they go at lengths to keep us. They stuff us into a metal room that's kept at a steady degree of twenty two Fahrenheit. I didn't feel the cold though. I was too hot blooded for that.

To my surprise, the door opened. In stepped a woman with red hair and a jacket. Huh, a jacket. That means that they're not an elemental. She must be a scientist then.

"Are you Ada or did I step into the wrong cell?" she asked.

She was a stupid scientist. On the outside of every cell is our experimental number and what we call ourselves.

I didn't call her stupid out loud, though. Only bad things come from snide comments and back talking. I take 'if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it at all' to a whole other level.

I nodded, "I'm Ada."

I could almost hear the things she must know about me. _Quiet. Obedient. Not much known. Had a history of rebellion. Complete turnaround._

"I have a special option for you," she said happily though her teeth were clattering, "Oh god, how do you stand this temperature?"

_I stand it because I have to, _I would have said in the past, _you guys think it's okay to just do this. How do you like it now that you're the one in here?_

"Oh yeah, you're an elemental. You're equipped for this." She said and got back on track of whatever she wanted to tell me, "We want you to be a Hunter."

She stopped talking and looked at me. God, she just wanted attention now, didn't she?

"What's a Hunter?" I asked, mainly from her benefit. I didn't really care. Nothing reaches me in my ice chamber and I'd say yes anyway, just to avoid the repercussions that would happen if I refused.

"They're a group of people who track down escaped experiments," she explained, "So far we have four of the six team members needed."

Humanish contact? It seemed like a dream after my three years of solitude. I was taken from my home when I was ten as a test to see if they could do experiments on anyone from anywhere at any age. When I got here, I rebelled for about two years. I just wanted to go home. At the two year mark, the scientists decided that they should torture me. It's been three years since I've become submissive and just sat quietly in my cell.

"Okay," I said softly. Even without the dreamish qualities, I would have said yes. And maybe when the time came, I'd get my rebellious stage back and stab everyone in the back, literally. It's something I would and could do.


	7. Leech

**Thanks Bobo for Jac! Except his name is… Well, you'll see in about three sentences.**

**Without Further Adieu,**

LEECHPOV

"Stupid," I punched the bars of my cage. Though I hadn't leeched out the strength of a mutant, I was strong. It came from wrestling mutants to the ground and holding them until I had fully taken their power.

When I take their power, they temporarily lose it. I keep it for two months but after that, it slips back to it's original owner. There are some useful weaklings here that let me take their power when I was empty. But I hadn't had time for that today. I was completely empty of outside power. My power wasn't much help either. It was always hungry, always wanting more.

"Freaking," I punched the cage again. The bars started to bend.

"Weakling," I growled as I punched it a third time. It cracked and some Erasers came and tossed me in a new one. The Erasers that they used to deal with me were fast instead of strong. They're so fast that they caught me by surprise. I was thrown out of my cell and into a new one.

"Third cage this week," one Eraser said to the other as he closed the door. I growled at him but decided against taking his powers. Having Eraser powers for the next two months? No thank you. They're only a bit better than humans. They're kind of strong and grow fur. That's it. I'd rather take bunny girl's power, and that's hopping.

"Think we should tell Boss?" the other Eraser asked. They couldn't think for themselves, either.

"Maybe," the other Eraser hesitated. He looked at me, "What do you think?"

Really? Really? God, Erasers must give up their brains for speed and strength. They're asking me?

But maybe I could work this to my advantage. If Brigid came, then I could beat the snot out of her. It would serve her right for pitting that weaker mutant against me.

The put a fire elemental in front of me. She was five years old and couldn't fight for spit. I was going to steal her power and put an end to her misery. She would die painfully for even thinking she could have a chance at winning over me.

But Brigid stopped the fight as I was sucking the power out of her and swept the little weakling away. I hadn't gotten all of the essence of power, so it all swept away leaving me exhausted.

"Yes," I said coldly, "You should bring your Boss here."

The scampered away and came back with their boss. Brigid was the one mainly in charge of the Erasers, so they followed her every order.

"Hello Leech," her eyes glinted with pride and I wondered what she had up her sleeve.

"Hello Brigid," I said in an opaque tone. No one could ever see what I really meant when I spoke like this. They only knew that what would come was never good.

"I'm just going to get this out of the way because recruiting is really tiring," she said and paused for effect, "I want you to be a Hunter. And before you ask, a Hunter is someone who either kills or brings back escaped mutants."

One word stood out from her short explanation. Kills. Was she saying that I would be able to kill any mutant outside the school? The ones that may actually be a challenge?

"What's the catch?" I asked her coldly.

"You have to work with others," Brigid said quietly, "And if you take away their powers, you'll be killed."

"So just restrain myself around like four people," I said blankly, "Shouldn't be too hard."

"That's why I stopped the massacre earlier today. The board wanted to know if you were too bloodthirsty to work around others. They know that you would've killed her and they're pleased with that. But if they saw you kill a little girl, then you'd have already missed your chance to join." Brigid told me.

She had developed a bit of a crush on me. She was doing me favors like this all the time. She pulled all the strings that she could to get me benefits. I can't say that I minded or that I didn't see why she did all these things. I'm hot.

I had shaggy brown hair and dark blue eyes. My skin is pale but not sickly pale. When standing straight, I easily tower over six feet.

I'm hot and right now, I'm itching to kill someone and take their power. I don't care if I have to pass up the opportunity to take some other high leveled powers. I needed out of this cell and to my usually power donors.

"I accept," I said and leaned back in the cage.


	8. Meeting

Eh. You don't really need that many guys with all the girls we've got.

This chapter's for Bobothehampster!

Without Further Adieu,

ELLAPOV

Brigid led me to a large room. It looked like a gym. In fact, it was a gym!

Disappointingly though, it was empty.

"Why are we here?" I asked her curiously.

"You were the first Hunter we assembled. The others will be here shortly." She told me and walked out. Hm, it looked like Brigid was in a rush.

A moment after she left, I wondered what I was supposed to do. I mean, there wasn't even a magazine or anything!

Thinking of something, I brought out my wings. I wonder if I could fly?

Actually, cross that out. I can fly. If Max can, I can too.

I closed my eyes and pictured Iggy. I pictured the way he would open his wings.

The way his wing muscles would ripple as they prepared themselves for flight.

The steady way they'd start to flap. My wings started to flap on their own.

I felt me feet leave the floor but I didn't stop. This was natural and the image in my mind was so I just didn't want to let go it.

My peace was interrupted. A quiet voice that somehow managed to sound snide interrupted my vision.

"You're first time flying?" a girl with brown hair and sky blue eyes sneered at me.

"Actually yeah," I said. Honesty usually deflected the comments. You can't really make fun of the truth.

"You haven't ever flown Before an you're a Hunter?" she wrinkled her nose in disgust, "Are they really that desperate?"

"It may not be as much about my flying as the fact that my scream can shatter glass and metal." I said sweetly.

Some realization dawned across her expression, "You're the reason everything's

laced with titanium now."

"Which means...?" I trailed off, looking confused.

"It means you're strong and you shouldn't take crap from anyone. If they think they need titanium for you, you're badass." she nodded her head in a bit of respect for me.

"What can you do?" I asked her eagerly, "And oh yeah, what's your name?"

"My name is Saw and you don't want to know the rest." she said shortly. I didn't have any more time to question her because another girl walked in. She had light blonde hair, fair skin, and light green eyes.

I landed on the ground as the girl appraised us. I didn't want her to think I was weak at first glance either.

"I'm Ella," I greeted her politely, "What's your name?"

"I'm Monyka!" she said happily, "Are you guys the Hunters?"

"Are you the prey?" Saw said snidely.

The little girl gained height and her features started to change. Her hair grew about two inches and became brown, her green eyes grew darker, and her skin grew tanned.

"Just thought that'd be a good way of showcasing my talent. What can you guys do?" she said pleasantly. I might come to be friends with this girl. Maybe.

"I can shatter glass and metal with my screams," I said proudly. If I could impress Ms. Crabby back there, I could impress Monyka.

"Cool," Monyka smiled at me. She turned to Saw, "Who are you?"

"I'm Saw and before you ask, you don't want to know what I can do." Saw said again.

"If you're going to be working with us, we're going to have to know what you can do." I told her sternly.

She waved her hand lazily to me, "Maybe later."

Deciding to take what I could get and vice versa, I let the matter go. I had a feeling that pressing the issue will create...unsavory...results.

A boy walked into the gym. He had shaggy brown hair and dark blue eyes. He was tall, taller than Iggy. He for some reason had on gloves.

"What's with the gloves?" I asked him, "It's not cold."

"I'd take them off if you'd prefer me sucking out your powers," he raised an eyebrow at me and I blushed. He made me feel really stupid right now.

"Of course not!" I squeaked and a nearby window cracked. Oops. Well, I blame him for the damage.

"It's you!" Saw yelled when she saw him. Her body had stiffened and she had gone into a battle position. Uh oh. Not good.

"Saw," he greeted her coldly. His mouth turned into a grimace.

"Leech," she growled at him. Something about her shifted. Was she a shape shifter like Monyka?

"Saw, calm down." Leech said slowly, "There are other people here."

"Another time then," she growled and closed her eyes. Maybe she wasn't as touch as she seemed if she didn't want to hurt us. She leaned against a wall and took several deep breaths. I noticed her fingernails retracted. What the hell?

"I suppose you know each other?" Monyka said in a confused tone. She sounded just as confused as me.

"He took my powers from me!" she shrieked. Apparently her calming strategy didn't work out. "I was normal for the longest time! I was weak!"

"It wasn't the best experience for me either," he said. His grimace was easily visible now, "Ugh. The urge to kill..."

"I'm the only one who can deal with it," she shrieked at him, "Just don't touch me!"

"No problem," he said easily, "I'd rather kill than be a demon if that makes any sense,"

"Some," Monyka said, "I mean, we're all here to kill, right?"

"But not all of us are demons," Saw said stiffly.

The door opened yet another time, but this time the person didn't come in right away.

She had short brown hair with golden highlights. Her eyes were green with golden rings around them. There was a scar running down her cheekbone.

"Are you the Hunters?" she stared at us distrustfully. Huh. Was she an unwilling Hunter?

"Yeah," Monyka said, "You?"

"I'm Ada. I'm a fire elemental," she said quietly.

"Really?" Saw said. She was interested in this girl, "Aren't those rare?"

Ada nodded, "I think there are five in this facility."

Suddenly, Brigid walked in. She pushed past Ada to stand in the center of us all.

"This is your team. Go train or talk or something. Just don't kill each other and I'll be happy.". She clapped we hands together and left.

"Very inspirational," I said dryly as I watched her back disappear. Brigid seemed so excited when she first recruited me. Now I felt like we were old toys. She was bored of us already.

"Very," Monyka agreed. Suddenly, I heard a crash to my right. Saw and Leech were fighting.

"I hate you!" she screamed. Her eyes were now pitch black, her hair was floating, her skin was paper white, and her nails had lengthened into pointy, deadly claws.

"You made me normal," she hissed, "They tried to kill me!"

"I'm sorry!" Leech said desperately, "I didn't know!"

"You should be!" Saw screeched and placed her claws over his throat, "Say goodbye."

Knowing that something needed to be done, I used my power. I screamed as hard as I could. Windows broke, metal shattered, and everyone except me dropped to the floor. Saw covered her ears and rolled away from Leech. The surprise of my verbal attack caused her to shift back to her normal form. She made sure to stay clear of Leech.

"Thanks," she said faintly to me, "I usually have a good lid on myself."

"What was that?" Monyka asked. She looked mildly scared and shocked, "Are you a shifter too?"

"That's my power and no, I'm not a shifter. I'm a killer. I look and behave like a demon when I'm in that form." She said, "God, it makes me tired when I use it."

"Then go to sleep," I said, already back to normal, "Were not going to slit your throat."

"Wouldn't put it past Leech," she chuckled darkly.

I rolled my eyes, "I'll make sure he doesn't either."

She nodded, and studied me. She saw the truth and honesty in my eyes and trusted me this one time. Her eyelids fluttered closed.

"Crazy bitch," I muttered when I was sure she was asleep.

By then, the others had started talking about their favorite ways to murder somebody, past experiences, and the best things they've ever done with their powers.

"What about you Ella?" Monyka asked me, "What do you think?"

"Best way to kill somebody? I've never actually killed before or anything close to it. I'm just so powerful that they wanted me on the team. I'm Maximum Ride's sister if that counts as an experience. And uh, I've only been a mutant for about five hours, so I haven't done very much." I said honestly.

"You're that new and they want you on the team?" Leech raised his eyebrows, "Boss."

"You're pretty lethal even before you've killed," Ada averted her eyes.

"Have _you_ ever killed?" Leech asked her scathingly.

She gave a quick nod, "Yeah. It was an accident. Probably. I burned a scientist to death."

"Cool." I smiled at her. Being around them, it turned me into a different Ella. The new Ella actually found it interesting that she burned someone to death. She found it cool that they've all killed.

The new Ella wanted to kill, just to see how it would feel.


	9. Almost There

**WEEKS? HAS IT BEEN WEEKS? Oh god Bobo, thank god you said something! Don't ever let me do that again!**

**And Pennycat, your hunter for Betrayal wasn't bloodthirsty enough. MAKE IT BLOODTHIRSTY!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

Ever since that one meeting, we've been seeing Brigid less and less, well except for Leech. He gets harassed by her every time they accidently pass each other in the hall. And believe me; we don't even try to hold back our snickers.

We've become incredibly close over past few weeks. We're allowed to roam the halls whenever we please and we usually go together. We'll ruff up passing mutants and laugh at their scared little faces. It's so amusing. At first, no one knew who we were. They were confused as to why we were allowed to be without guards. Then word got around about who our little group was and _viola!_ Instant fear in any little experiment's eyes.

The gym where we all first met had become our lair. We spent most of our time there, in fact. A neat fact that we learned was that if we pressed a silver button, a small flat bed will pop out of the wall for us to sleep on. Pillows and blankets were stored in a drawer under the specified bed. And the other day, some workmen came in and installed training objects for us to amuse ourselves with. There were tons of ropes that crisscrossed at the ceiling. Sometimes we'll hang upside down and try to fight. It's really fun but I almost always lose. I think Saw throws a couple matches so others won't 'give me crap' as she says. At least I have an ally, but a strange one at that.

Saw decided that Leech probably won't kill her or take away her powers in her sleep, so she stopped sleeping with one eyes open for it. I'm not saying that they're best friends now, but they haven't attacked each other and they don't go out of their way to avoid each other now.

Ada keeps to herself. I can tell that she tries to interact with us. I definitely know that she doesn't throw fights; I have a big bruise on my leg for proof. However, she's always on the fringe of things. I try to get her in the group, but she acts all suspicious. Maybe she just doesn't trust easily, like Max. In fact, I'm sure that's it. She just needs time to know that it's not _her_ throat we'll be slitting.

Monyka is probably Ada's complete opposite. If Ada's quiet, then Monyka's a volcano full of sound. Monyka is always talking about something positive to me. Around the others, she's all cool but she's herself with me. I guess she knows that I'm the same as her on the inside, even if I won't show her it yet. Of course, those positive sides are becoming less strong. We don't really mind though. Who we're becoming is who we're meant to become.

A new man names Devin came into our little lair everyday and taught us how to wield guns. He didn't have any trouble teaching _that_ subject, I snickered. His arm had basically been chopped off and a gun grafted on. Completely the opposite of what he says it is, but it's the truth. I'm second best at shooting, even though I never have before. I always get near the red dot that we're supposed to shoot on the targets he brings. Leech on the other hand gets a bull's eye almost every time. Saw is as good as me and Monyka's right behind us. Ada's on the fringe as always, but she makes it. I guess that's why they chose her. She's not great but she's not bad like all the other experiments would be.

What Ada lacks in shooting, she makes up for in hand to hand combat. She and Leech tussled for a bit one day and he got a small glint in his eyes. Ugh, he was going to try to charm her. Even though we don't like him, we're forced to. He acts like when the powers he takes go away, he loses them forever. Sadly, that's not the case. A small bit stays with him every time, like a residue. He used to suck the power out of a girl made to be a succubus every time that no one else was in reach. From what I've put together, he sucked her power about twenty times. That's bound to leave something, and it did. When he decides to, he can charm people into giving up. But that didn't work on Ada.

Let's rewind a bit. So Leech gets this weird glint in his eye that he gets whenever he decides to use his power and fight dirty. Ada sees it too, but when you see it, it's too late. Not for Ada, though. She grabbed his bare wrist and set her finger tips on fire.

"Oww!" Leech jumped away from her and clutched his slightly burned skin. Okay, make that severely burned. I could smell burning flesh.

"You're lucky that I sucked the power of a healer this morning," he hissed as he squeezed his injury more. A drop of blood dripped down and he let go. When he moved his hand away, I saw only new skin. That must have been a powerful healer.

"Sorry," Ada apologized with a hint of sarcasm, "I just thought that if you could use your power, then I could use mine."

Leech waved her apology off, "It's fine enough. I just don't like having my arm burned off."

_I bet that you don't like getting your eardrums popped either_, I smiled wickedly. Ada was brilliant! Just fight fire with fire, why the heck didn't I think of that? Oh yeah, I was usually already getting my brain turned to mush by Leech's charm.

"Thanks," I mumbled to Ada, who blushed in response. We must have been thinking the same thing for her to have gotten the meaning so quickly. To my surprise, Saw even gave her a quick smile. Monyka wasn't paying attention; she was just staring out the window.

"When do you think we'll get to prove ourselves?" she asked quietly, "I _want_ to be a Hunter and hunt, but so far we've just been having fun. I-I want to snap necks and spatter blood."

"Just let me take the powers of little Angel first," Leech grinned maliciously, "If there's no body to go back to, I get to keep the powers!"

That was a tidbit he had learned a long time ago. He just didn't make the connection until now between death and his power. He had sucked a super soldier's strength out and he was retired because the scientists didn't know why he was suddenly useless. And since he had super strength _and_ could still absorb powers; that meant that he could take and just keep taking. It was the perfect power, I wish I had it. Actually, I take that back. Leech can't ever have contact with anyone without fear of taking their pride. And from the way he looked at Saw, I'm sure he hated his power very much.

**(WAS THIS ENOUGH TO PLEASE YOUR HEARTS FOR NOW!)**

***hides under rock***

**Me: Please don't eat me. If you do, then you'll have **_**no**_** chapters **_**ever**_**!**

**Bobo: Oh, we're not going kill you.**

**Pennycat11: We're going to kidnap you.**

**(Both): And make you write forever and ever and ever and ever!**

**Me: NOOOOO! I'LL WRITE! Wait, you're threat isn't a bad option, actually. Will you give me food?**

**(They look at each other and shrug)**

**Bobo: Sure.**

**Me: What will you give me?**

**Pennycat11: It depends on the chapter. If it's good, then you get honey from the invading bees. If it's bad…**

**(Both): WE EAT YOU!**


	10. Dividing to Conquer

Um, sneaking another chapter. No reason for you guys to complain 'cause its for you.

Ha! I know what th pairing with be for this story! It's not Eggy, it's...Galla! Or ezzy!

Without Further Adieu,

ELLAPOV: TWO MONTHS LATER

I snapped the clone's neck and unceremoniously dropped the corpse to the ground. It's strawberry blond hair was stuff with its own sweat and tears.

"You'll never be Iggy," I spat at the body. This one was boring to deal with. I barely thought of it a a person. It was blind and looked like him, but they were completely different. The clone hadn't inherited his mutations, his snarky attitude, or his courage.

I'd been dealing with Iggy clones all day. I think this was the twenty third today that I've taken care of. The scientists make a bunch and hope one'll be a success and then when they aren't, they're sent to us. It's one of our daily duties.

Sighing, I tossed the body into a garbage disposal. It would be disintegrated before it started to smell, thankfully.

Monyka appeared in the doorway. I think she'd been waiting for me. Seeing her face made me loosen up and a smile came on my face.

"Have something against clones?" she chuckled, "You've been killing them all day."

"I just want to prepare for when we take down the Flock," I answered honestly, "I want to know his weak points."

"He's blind," Monyka rolled her eyes, "He has weak points everywhere."

"It's just that he's barely mixed up in any of Max's crap. I'm going to make his death short and painless."

"Sounds right," she shrugged, "I'd do that too if I didn't want poor Angel to suffer."

"Dr. Hans is here today. He wants to give us our mission today." she remembered.

"A mission or the mission?" I asked curiously. Did he want us to take out the flock now? We've only had one mission before. We passed the mission of course, we were the best out there. We were certainly capable now to take out the Flock.

I could alter my pitch easily to make it silent to humans and mutants but have it still break glass. It was useful when we need to be stealthy.

Monyka could shift to anyone and have the disguise be perfectly deceptive. She even learned how to change her voice.

Saw has gotten over her trust problems. She didn't ever let Leech actually touch her, but she allowed him to be within three feet of her.

Leech had been sucking power out of people like crazy. He killed a healer so he could always be able to heal injuries, minor ones at least. And he's been working on restraining his power so that he can touch without taking powers. He's getting better but we only let him practice on lower mutants, just in case.

Ada was...Ada. She was powerful and she did what he was told. That's all we cared about. She didn't really socialize with anyone in the Hunters, or anyone at all for the matter. She was a loose end. I wonder when she'd be tied up. Eh, we need her now and that's what matters.

I pushed through the doors to our lair. It was empty or so I thought. We had all gotten good at hiding and liked to pop out from behind objects and try to scare each other.

I saw movement at the rope of our little rope ceiling. Saw was there, eavesdropping.

I called over Saw, "Hey! Watcha doing?"

Saw dropped to the ground, "What are you guys talking about?"

"Just dividing up opponents for when we take on the Flock," I said evenly. I wonder who Saw wants.

"Who do you want to take down?" Saw asked us curiosity.

"Iggy," I answered immediately.

"Angel," Monyka grinned, "That brat's gonna get what's coming for her."

"I hadn't really thought about it," Saw thought for a second, "But I guess Fang or Maximum. They'd put up a good fight. I want a challenge."

Leech walked inside, "I just so happened to hear your conversation. I also want either Maximum or Fang. Want to arm wrestle for Maximum?"

Hm, I thought that I heard Leech say that he explicitly wanted to take on Fang. Then I realized his plan. Saw was competitive enough that she would take the challenge, even if that meant contact with Leech. Clever.

Saw obviously saw through his plan, but she didn't disregard it. Instead, she walked to a small table we had and placed her arm on it, in position. Leech was surprised that his plan worked, but he immediately copied Saw.

"Two out of three?" Saw asked. Their hands weren't exactly touching yet, but it was close.

"Sure," Leech smirked, "Whenever you're ready."

Saw grabbed Leech's hand. I saw her flinch at the contact, but she didn't pull away. Leech's smile got wider.

First Leech won, but then Saw got her head in the game. She was the next round. It was tied. I saw Leech loosen his arm just enough so that Saw wouldn't notice, but so that she would win. That sneaky devil was throwing the match! He wanted Fang as a victim all along, this was just for Saw to trust him.

"I get Maximum," Saw smirked as she straightened up and let go of Leech, "Yay."

"And I got Fang," he caught my eye and winked, "He's a close second."

He knew that I knew. He also knew that I wouldn't tell.

"So I get Iggy, Monyka gets Angel, Leech gets Fang, and Saw gets Max. Who gets Nudge and who gets Gazzy?" I asked.

Ada's head peeked out from behind some training equipment, "I'll take Nudge."

Saw turned to me, "Do you want Gazzy?"

I remembered his spiky blond hair and sky blue eyes. I remembered his fireworks that he did for the Flocks birthday, and then again for mine. I remember the time I was sick while the visited and he sat with me until I fell asleep.

If I said no, they'd wonder why. I'd be seen as a weakling. I might even be cast out of the Hunters.

"Sure," I made my voice as carefree as possible.

Fortunately, Dr. Hans walked in right then. He clapped his hands a couple times to get our attention.

"Oh good, you're all here." he gave us an approving smile, "And I'm sure you're dying to know what your next mission is."

"We're ecstatic," Saw said acidly. She didn't really like Dr. Hans, hasn't since he tried to provoke her demon form out of her.

The sarcasm was completely lost on Dr. Hans, "Well then! Good! And I know it's early, but I think you're ready for this mission! You're mission is to bring down the Flock!"

"Why so early?" Ada aske inquisitively.

Dr. Hans looked at me when he answered, "Any later, and the Flock won't trust Ella completely anymore."

"Why would they?" Leech was confused.

I was slightly distressed when I answered, "It might be because I'm her sister?"

"Sister?" Saw said in disbelief, "Even I can't cover this one for you."

"Woah," Ada said. She was shocked.

"You're Max's sister?" Monyka was surprised but I didn't see anything else. She didn't hold it against me.

And then Leech surprise all of us. I expected him to hate me or something.

"Hardcore," he said with a new found respect in his eyes, "You're prepared to take down your family and friends? I'm a weakling next to you. I mean, I couldn't kill Saw or the rest of you."

Leech was saying this? Leech?

"It's no biggie," I said, surprised, "Max and I were never that close."

"Huh," Leech said. He looked torn between believing his new vision of me or believing me. Thankfully, he chose to believe me. Nothing had changed.

"Back to the point, you embark on your mission next week. I don't care how you do it, just bring down the Flock. But I wouldn't mind it if you brought some of them back here for samples." Dr. Hans looked hopeful.

Sorry, but that's the one thing I won't do. I won't put them back in cages. It would be crueler than killing them. They'd thank me if they could.


	11. Finding Them

Yo! I would...you know...enjoy it if you reviewed. C'mon, use the new button! It's blue!  
Without Further Adieu,  
EllaPOV

We boarded a small plane because it was less conspicuous than flying. But isn't it kind of redundant? To avoid being seen, we're in the plane with the logo 'Itex', one of the world's most hated companies, written in bold letters. I could fly to Colorado -where the Flock currently is- so there shouldn't be a problem.

My flying ability has increased to the point that I could fly from Washington State to Florida without breaking a sweat. I was faster than most mutants too, because I have some of Max's DNA.

It's been three days since had given us our mission and that's when I learned something. It turns out that The Flock' house in Colorado is bugged and someone overheard one of Iggy's plans. I just got a text of what they heard.

You see, Iggy likes Max. She obviously doesn't like him back and he could see that. Iggy decided to make her jealous. With me. I thought that he was nice because he actually thought of me as a friend! Maybe more, I don't know! But I'm just a pawn to him!

"I'm going to kill him!" I crushed a can of Coke in my right hand.

"Well of course," Monyka chuckled, "And I'm going to kill Angel. Why the sudden change of mood?"

"What happened to 'He's not mixed up in anyone's shit. He'll die painlessly'?" Saw gave her impersonation of me a high, squeaky voice.

I tossed my phone to Monyka and Saw leaned over to read it.

"Oh, harsh." Monyka sympathized with me.

Saw just growled when she saw it and saw back down in her leather airplane seat. Saw had taken to treating me like a little sister of sorts. She never showed emotion, but she'd discreetly take care of things I couldn't handle. So maybe she wasn't like a sister. Maybe she's more like a guardian angel. The fact that Iggy did this and she could do nothing infuriated her.

"His death will be slow," I said, mainly for myself, "And painful."

Leech came over from the front of the plane, "What are we talking about, ladies?"

"None of your business," Ada replied shortly from the seat behind me. Huh. I always thought Ada was kind of shy. Afraid, even. But now, I realized, she just was reluctant to share information.

Saw ignored Ada's outburst, "Ella had a change of heart about her prey."

"Has she gone soft?" he looked at me with something dark in his eyes, "Because we all know what happens to soft people."

"I've gone the opposite of soft, Leech." my voice was as cold as ice, "You should know that. I'm just going to kill Iggy slowly."

"And painfully," Monyka smiled coldly, "We can't forget that."

"Change of subject," Saw said suddenly, "How are we going to do this? Do we storm the Flock? Or do we insert someone to earn their trust and lure them out first?"

"First option won't work." Ada contributed. That surprised us. Today, she was definitely willing to talk, "If we storm them, we won't be able to focus and someone will be able to escape."

"So the second option," Saw nodded, "Who do we send in?"

"Ella, of course." Monyka answered, "They trust her already so it'll be a cinch."

I shook my head quickly, "Too unbelievable. They think I'm weak little Ella. To to what they know, I wouldn't last a week without someone to take care of me."

"They treat you like a five year old," Saw shook her head, "Stupid creatures deserve to die."

"I have an idea," Leech said slowly, "We still send Ella in, but we send someone in with her."

"Then me," Monyka suggested, "Since Ella and I get along so well."

I shook my head, "You wouldn't be able to restrain yourself around Angel."

"Not me," Ada said shortly. I wonder why she flat out refused like that. I'd confront her later, "I'd rather just kill Nudge and get it all done at once."

"Saw," Leech smiled triumphantly, "She should go."

"Why?" she was slightly surprised that she was nominated.

"Look," Leech rolled his eyes, "We all see that you're protective of Ella here. That gives you a legit smite reason for 'breaking Ella out'."

"You're right," Monyka nodded.

"So Ella and Saw go to the Flock and lure them into an ambush." Leech summed it up, "We'll find a way to contact you of the when and where."

An unclear voice sounded through the plane's intercom, "The plane will be landing in approximately ten minutes. Please fasten your seat belts."

Leech gave a wave in goodbye as he walked back to his seat in the front of the plane. The rest of us just leaned back and buckled out seat belts.

I scribbled a note on a piece of scrap paper and tossed it to Ada.

'What are you hiding?'

She wrote something and threw it back.

'Nothing'

I scrawled something else and threw it back.

'R U shy?'

I heard a sigh and the ball of paper came my way again.

'Wait until we're alone. I'll explain it to you then.'

I nodded and tossed the paper into a metal trash can. Monyka looked at me questioningly but I just shook my head.

"It's nothing." I smiled convincingly at her. She shrugged and turned her attention back to a book she was reading.

The plane grew bumpy and I looked out the window. All I saw was a bunch of trees and an isolated house here and there.

The plane landed near a medium sized white house with a gray roof.

"This building belongs to Itex." Monyka informed us, "I've been here before. It's really cool."

Once the plane touched the ground, a major earthquake happened.

"Oh god," I gripped the seat, "It's an earthquake."

"Just watch," Monyka smiled knowingly.

The ground under the plane started to sink. At first I thought the earth was caving in on itself, but I saw that the sinking surface was a level circle. The plane lowered until I could barely see the sky and then some metal contraption blotted it out completely.

Now around us was a huge white space filled with lab equipment. Scientists scurried around like ants.

Cautiously, we all unloaded from the plane. Except for Monyka, of course. She was bouncing around from all the place.

"I was created here," She shared, "This lab monitored Maximum Ride in her early years secretly. It's still in use. It has been, ever since it's been created. It's the only place that they can work freely ever since the mobs of Flock-supporters started attacking the known Itex branches."

I nodded. I was speechless. How did something this big go unnoticed? Suddenly, I realized that this was my chance to talk to Ada.

Everyone was still checking out the scenery so I grabbed Ada's elbow and pulled her into a supply closet.

"So what are you hiding?" I crossed my arms.

She sighed, "Maybe I should tell you. After all, if I don't you'll jump to conclusions."

"I had planned to run away from you guys as soon as you stopped watching me," She confided, "I thought that was the only way to gain my freedom and I frankly want to see my parents again." she took a deep breath, "But I decided not to."

I was intrigued, "Why?"

"I figured that I'd see my parents soon enough. One of our missions has to take place in Florida, right? And as a Hunter, I have a lot of freedom. I'm at the top. So I guess I got my wish after all." she answered.

"Why didn't you tell us this?" I asked her curiously.

She answered my question with a question, "Why didn't you share that you were Max's sister?"

I was afraid of it being held against me, "Touché."

"Don't tell anyone," she requested, "I'll try to be a better part of the group. Just don't tell."

I nodded solemnly, "Okay. Just don't turn your back on us."

She gave me a little smile, "Okay. And thanks, Ella."

"No prob." I opened the door of the closet, "Let's get back to the others."

Their was a new confidence to Ada's stride as she walked. After searching aimlessly for the others for a few minutes, we bumped into Saw.

"Where were you?" Saw asked in irritation.

"We got separated," I smiled apologetically, "Sorry."

"It's okay," she blew the hair out of her eyes, "Ada, you find Monyka or Leech. Ella, some person named Anne wants us to report to room A6."

"Bye Ella," Ada waved at me as she walked away into the sea of white coats.

"What's up with her?" Saw asked, "She seems talkative today."

"Just an epiphany," I shrugged, "Now where's A6?"

Half an hour later, we found ourselves in a large room labeled A6. A tall woman with blonde hair pulled back into a bun greeted us.

"Ella Martinez and Saw," she shook our hands, "It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Anne Walker."

"Cool," I said. Max had mentioned Anne a couple of times. None of those times had held nice comments for her.

Saw got right to the point, "Why are we here?"

"A team of stylists will change your appearance so that it will look like you've been on the run for quite a while." she said and had us sit down in two office chairs. People crowded around us and I closed my eyes. This could take a while.

When I woke up, the stylists were just finishing. I opened my eyes and found myself face to face with a mirror. I touched my cheek. Wow.

My skin was cakes with dirt and I had a realistic looking cut running down my cheekbones. Wait, was that blood? They had cut me! Well, it didn't hurt and it was necessary. I guess. My hair was knotted and oily. My clothes were ripped, dirty, and stiff with what looks like blood. I looked like I had just come out of a plane crash in the middle of no where.

I looked over to Saw who was studying her own reflection. She was just as bad as me, except she had a cut running down her left arm.

Anne handed us both two metal bracelets. I slid mine on without a second thought and Saw did the same.

"These will project a story to Angel completely unrelated to what you're really thinking. Ella, Angel is going to think that you're traumatized and that you have frequent nightmares. Saw, you're going to be suspicious of everything and be protective of Ella. That's all you really need to know." Anne told us and gestured to a metal door to behind us, "That door leads to about a mile near Maximum's house. Your mission starts as soon as you're out of this room."

"Then let's go," I said and stood up, cracking my knuckles. Saw rolled her eyes and just walked out the door. I scurried behind her. Soon, we walked out of what looked like a cave from the outside and into a damp forest.

"Let's just stick to the story, okay?" she told me, "We met while you were in the school, I instantly wanted to protect you, and we broke out together."

"I know," I told her, "I'm not stupid."

Saw changed the subject, "So you're Maximum's sister."

I nodded, "It doesn't really matter though. I'm just Ella."

"It just surprised me," she said blankly,  
"I didn't know how to protect you from that."

"I don't need people to protect me all the time," I said with acid in my voice.

"You'll need to get used to it though," she chuckled, "You're going to get pampered 24/7 once we get there."

"How should I react?" I pondered, "When we get there, I mean."

"Do what comes naturally," She advised. I nodded and caught sight of the E-shaped house that CSM had rebuilt.

I saw Gazzy and Angel playing tag out in the front yard. Suddenly, Angel froze and looked in our direction.

"Who's there?" she called meekly. The sound of her voice filled me with a strange anger.

I kept my voice level, "It's me. Ella."

Gazzy froze and turned to my direction, "Ella?"

His voice didn't make me angry, like Angel did.

Angel wasn't fazed by it being me, "Who's your friend?"

"A girl that managed to help me break out," I made myself smile weakly, "Her name is-"

"Saw," named girl interrupted me, "My name is Saw."

"We just got out and I just knew that I should come here for some reason and I'm so glad to see you," I smiled sweetly.

Angel let her guard down and tool my hand, "You're here now Ella. Don't worry."

I took a peek at Saw and made sure that my face held nothing but what should be on there.

Phase one complete.


	12. Gazzy's Kiss

**Well, here ya go! I love to listen to music wjile I work! Want to hear some of my favorite songs?**

**Back in time- Pitbull**

**Love Story-Taylor Swift**

**You belong with me- Taylor Swift**

**P.L.U.R.- Blood on the Dance Floor (Fave Song EVAH!)**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

Angel and Gazzy had each taken one of my hands and was dragging me to the door of the house. Saw was watching the display with amusement and trailed behind us silently.

With her other hand, Angel opened the door and shouted, "Max! Come here!"

"What Angel?" her voice was vaguely annoyed, "I'm kind of busy with- Ella?"

Max dropped the phone that she was holding and her face went incredulous. The phone hit the ground with a crack. Max's brown and blonde hair streamed down her waist, noticeably longer.

"Ella?" her voice was quieter. She blinked and enveloped me in a hug, "Ella, are you okay? Did you get hurt? How did you survive?"

"I'm adaptable," I gave her a restrained smile. She was treating me like a child that couldn't fend for herself.

Saw saved me from her babying, "Hello. You must be Maximum."

Max straightened up and glared at Saw in suspicion, "Who are you?"

"She _saved_ me from the School," I lied innocently, "She made sure that I didn't get hurt."

"What happened while you were…away?" Gazzy gulped. Why was he feeling emotional? It is not as if we were related or anything.

"Ella!" Iggy crowed from the top of the stairs, "I'd know that voice anywhere."

He came down the steps and tried to give me a kiss, but Saw blocked his way.

"Who are you?" he asked in irritation.

"My name is Saw," she hissed, "You must be Iggy. You're not touching her."

"And why not?" he asked sarcastically. I needed to relieve the tention fast.

"Saw, it's okay," I lied, struggling to keep my voice calm and childlike, "Iggy's my boyfriend. He's not at all like how Monyka said."

"How did this Monyka describe me?" Iggy's voice was amused now, not angry or irritated.

"A pervert who uses girls and then throws them away," Saw growled. Huh, that was spot on.

"I'd never use Ella!" he lied. He was really good at lying; I wouldn't have known he was lying if I hadn't already known he was using me.

I took Iggy's hand and Gazzy stiffened. With one look into his angry eyes, I learned that he knew of Iggy's plan and he loathed it.

Max was oblivious to the tension, "How about I call mom and tell her you're here?"

"No!" I exclaimed but then reclaimed my calm atmosphere, "I mean, I don't know how to use my wings and if you called her, I'd have to go there right away. I'd like to spend a few weeks with you guys."

"Wings?" Angel's mouth dropped open, "You have wings?"

I nodded, "The whitecoats grafted them on. They feel natural, I guess."

"Then of course you can stay with us!" Max smiled, "We can't have you going somewhere without you knowing how to fly! That would be dangerous for you!"

"Thanks Max," my eye twitched. She was still treating me like a child, "Can Saw stay too?"

Max glanced from Saw's protective stance to my hopeful countenance, "Sure, Ella. Whatever you want. Iggy, Angel, and I will go fix up your rooms. Go tell Nudge and Fang that you're here."

"Fang?" I played dumb, "What are you talking about? Why isn't he with his group?"

"That's right, you didn't know," Max smiled condescendingly at me, "Fang decided to stay with me and Dylan fell in love with Star from Fang's group. Now he's leader. Completely random, I know, but that's how life works."

No, that's not how life works at all. Star is an undercover agent for Itex and lured Dylan out of the equation.

"I guess that is how life works," I smiled at Max sweetly. I can't wait until Saw sinks her claws into her.

I ran up the stairs, making sure to make my footsteps heavy. It wouldn't make sense for my footsteps to suddenly become silent. I could sense Saw behind me.

"Where are they?" Saw asked calmly.

"Last I remember, Nudge's room is right to our left and Fang's is beside that," I answered, "Let's see Fang first."

Saw shrugged and put her hand on my shoulder, "Are you sure you're okay with Iggy?"

I nodded. Saw was compromising the mission. What if someone heard her?  
I knocked on Fang's door and let myself in. He was lying on his bed, listening to Blood on the Dance floor. I think that band perfectly suited him.

"Wha-" he looked at us, "Ella! What are you doing here? No one comes in my room!"

I looked around. Tons of black and gray everywhere, except…was that a collauge of Max pictures?

"I see why," I made myself –ugh- giggle.

"Same old Ella," he rolled his eyes, "Now get out of my room."

"Did you miss me?" I asked, playing to the old Ella's insecurities.

"Of course," he said blankly, "Now I mean it, get out of my room."

"Bye," I gave him a little wave, "And this is Saw!"

I shut the door before he could say anything. He had looked surprised that he hadn't noticed Saw.

"Now let's go say hi to Nudge," I sighed and we stepped into Nudge's room. It looked like she wasn't missing me at all. She was jumping on her pink bedspread on her pink bed in her pink room. There wasn't much color in her room besides pink.

"Ella!" she squealed in between a verse of her favorite song, Baby by Justin Beiber, "Come sing with me."

Saw pushed me towards her, "For the mission."

I glared at her but then realized that we were safe. No one but me would hear her over the racket coming from Nudge's stereo.

I sighed and climbed onto Nudge's bed. She took my hands and made me jump with her.

"I'm pretty tired," I lied to Nudge after a while of jumping, "The journey here was exhausting."

"Okay, Ella!" she exclaimed while I climbed off the bed, "Come back and we'll do this again soon! I love it when we sing together! It's so fun! Yay!"

I smiled blankly in response as I headed out of her room, dragging Saw with me.

"How come they never focus on you?" I grumbled.

"You're the main attraction Ells," she rolled her eyes, "Now what do we do?"

A voice behind us spoke. Gazzy's voice, actually, "Now I ask if I can borrow Ella for a second."

Saw looked surprised but shrugged, "She's her own property. Ask her."

Gazzy scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, "Sorry. Ella, will you join me for a walk. We have a lot to catch up on."

"Sure," I said slowly. I wonder why he wanted to talk to me.

I said good-bye to Saw and walked beside Gazzy as he headed outside. He walked towards and old forest path that I remembered hiking on once. I think it was Gazzy I hiked beside. Huh.

After we were out of sight of the house, Gazzy back me up against a tree. He place his arm beside my head on the tree and leaned in.

"I'm here to tell you," he breathed on my face, "To break up with Iggy. He's using you."

My voice trembled when I spoke. His face was way to close. I could have easily killed him then, but I couldn't. I had to wait.

"He's not using me," I lied weakly, "We _love_ each other."

He leaned back and rolled his eyes, "Ella, I know that you don't love him. Maybe you used to, but you don't now."

"Gazzy, you don't understand," I smirked at him innocently, "You just don't."

"I think I do," he said stubbornly, "You're scared of not having someone by your side! You're scared of not having a boyfriend! And if that's true, then you can still break up with Iggy!"

"That doesn't even make sense," I scoffed.

His face softened, "It makes sense because if you break up with Iggy, you'll still have me."

I froze and he leaned and softly kissed me on the lips. He was soft and smelled like peppermint and cinnamon mixed together.

I pushed him off me and stormed back to the house. I just _let_ him do that! I could've stopped him! I didn't even have to kill him, I could've just went back to the house before it was too late, but I let it happen!

"Stay away from me," I growled as he tried to catch up to me, "If you know what's good for you, you'll stay away from me."

And the bad thing, other than I let it happen?

I liked it.


	13. Pay

**Okay, so my Hunger Games Story was deleted by the admin. of Fanfiction. It kind of sucks, but it's okay. I'll make a new one that's perfectly legal. Unfortunately, I won't be able to take in tributes by review. But don't worry Pennycat, I have you covered.**

**Without Further Adieu.**

ELLAPOV

I stormed into the house and ran straight to the kitchen where I could smell cookies. Instead of it being Iggy making them, it was Angel. She looked adorable in her pink apron and chef's hat. When she saw me, she immediately handed me one.

"I was making them to give you a taste of home," she smiled cheerfully as I shoved it into my mouth. They tasted just as good as mom's. The cookie was soft but not falling apart. The chocolate was plentiful and melted, but there wasn't too many.

"You look like you could use some more cookies right now," she handed me half of the plate of cookies she had made. Hesitantly, I took more. What should I tell her?

"Boys are so confusing," I groaned. The old Ella would do something like that. She would tell Angel the truth and moan about what happened.

"Are you talking about Iggy?" she munched on her own cookie and her blond curls hung around her delicate face.

I shook my head and forced a few tears to spill over, "It's Gazzy."

Angel nodded knowingly, "Ah, I see."

"He kissed me," I confessed, "Everything is so confusing because I-"

I cut myself off. Angel didn't need to know anything more, "Because I love Iggy and he loves me."

I heard almost silent footsteps drawing near. I pretended not to hear Saw as she entered the kitchen.

"What happened, Ella?" she asked demandingly. She was playing the protective sister role really well. I could tell that she knew my tears were fake, though. I didn't cry. I just didn't. No one in the Hunters did.

"Gazzy kissed her," Angel said, as my mouth was full of cookie. Saw's hand twitched and she started to shift. I launched myself from my seat and grabbed her arm.

"Stop it Saw!" I whispered in her ear, "If you shift, you'll hurt us. You'll hurt me. You don't want that, do you?"

Saw stiffened as she tried to hold off the changing process, "I'll never hurt you, Ella."

Saw took another deep breath and relaxed, "I'm good. Just don't let Gazzy in my sight for the rest of the day."

"What does Ella mean by shift?" Angel asked innocently.

I decided to bend the truth a bit, "Saw is a shape shifter. If she gets mad, then she'll shift into an animal and let her instincts take over. I'm like her good luck charm because if I'm near her, she'll control if she changes or not."

Saw gave me a look that clearly said 'good one'. I smiled inwardly with pride. I was getting better at lying every day.

"Oh," Angel grabbed another cookie and handed it to Saw, "Then I'm glad you found her, Ella."

I smirked, "I'm glad I did, too."

"You two seem close," Angel noticed as she saw our proximity.

"Ella is like a little sister," Saw forced some warmth into her tone, "I never had any family before."

"Saw is like…another great big sister." I smiled because that's what Ella would do.

"Can I see your wings?" Angel asked suddenly, "You said that you had them, but no one has seen them."

That's right, I did mention that. Ella would jump at the opportunity to show her wings off.

"Sure!" I said bubbly. Gazzy was almost completely erased from my mind now.

Angel led us into the backyard and I took off my jacket. I handed it to Saw who watched me with a blank expression. I begged her silently to realize that this was just the old Ella, but then realized that was pointless. Saw really was like my older sister. She'd know that I was acting.

I smiled and let out my wings. They were a glorious twenty feet, and a shining black. At the places that the sun hit it, the feathers were violet.

"I was infused with raven DNA," I told Angel. I'd seen my files while I was back at the school.

"They look like Fang's," she noted but I disagreed.

"Fang's are like a crow," I told her, "His are pitch black. No hues."

"How do you know?" Angel looked at me with a suspicious intensity. This wasn't supposed to happen! They were supposed to think that I was just stupid Ella!

"Back in science class, we learned about birds. They're really pretty, don't you think?" I added wistfully. Angel shrugged noncommittally, but stopped looking suspicious.

"Ella!" I heard Iggy call me, "Ella, where are you?"

"I've got to go," I smiled and headed back towards the house. When Angel couldn't see my face, I scowled at the fact that Iggy wanted me to come. Knowing him…

I was right. Ten minutes later, he was shoving his slimy tongue down my mouth. We were right in front of Max. I _wonder_ why, I thought in disgust.

Regardless to Iggy's efforts, Max didn't care. Fang was too busy trying to shove _his_ tongue down _her_ throat. Ugh.

Gazzy entered the living room and stared at the kissing couples in disgust. I don't care how much I liked or despised him right now. I begged him with my eyes to get me out of this situation.

Gazzy saw my plea and tore Iggy off of me. I was just asking him to fart or something. But this was good too.

"What the hell, man?" Iggy snapped at Gazzy, "Just because I have a hot babe with me doesn't give you the right to get jealous."

"Hey, break up the fight," Max said blandly before going back to kissing Fang. That's it? Max wasn't even going to- Argh. This was why she was going to be wiped off the face of the planet. She was useless.

"Ella knows that you're using her," Gazzy growled at Iggy, "I told her. You know that I like her and you're _using her!_"

"What are you talking about?" Iggy played dumb, "Ella, you knows that he's talking nonsense, right?"

This was perfect! I pretend that I did in fact learn it from Gazzy, and I have a legitimate reason to not have him shove his tongue down my throat.

I made my voice teary, "I know that you love Max, not me!"

With that, I covered my mouth as if struck by grief and ran out of the house and onto the forest trail that I went on earlier today.

As soon as I was out of hearing range, I crashed onto the ground and wrapped my arms around myself.

"HahahAhaHa!" laughter erupted from my lungs and couldn't tune it down. I hoped that no one could hear me.

"That was a really good act," Saw chuckled from a tree above me. She was lounging on a large branch ad I'm sure she hadn't been there five seconds ago, "I saw the damage you did to their happy atmosphere and tailed you."

"How's everyone?" I managed between fits of laughter. It is so _fun_ to play with people!

"Maximum is shocked, Gazzy is beating Iggy up despite his puny size, Iggy is getting beat up and trying to get Maximum to go out with him, and Fang is…silent." She finished.

"That was so _fun_!" I exclaimed, "I was all like 'boo hoo, I'm so weak and pitiful! Waah!'"

"That _was_ funny," she conceded, "And knowing that you could kill them all with your power alone was hilarious!"

"But I don't _want_ to explode their brain matter," I frowned, "I want them to suffer."

I stood up and wiped the dead leaves off my shirt. Suddenly, Saw hid in a particularly full branch of leaves.

"Someone's coming," she warned me. My smile slid off of my face and I made myself look like I was crying.

Max ran up to me and enveloped me in a hug. She pet my hair like I was a frightened child.

"It's okay Ella. Shush, it's okay. I'll never like Iggy, don't worry. There doesn't have to be a rift between you too because of me," she rubbed my back.

I wrestled myself out of her grip and wipe me 'tears' off with my sleeve, "But he was using me! He doesn't like me!"

Max frowned, "I know. I'm speaking nonsense, aren't I? You and Iggy are probably never going to go out again, and I won't blame you. Not everyone can overcome a broken heart, only the strongest can. Therefore, if you can't love Iggy again, I know someone else who you should set your sights on. Gazzy."

"Do you advise me going out with him?" I asked with dread. If Max suggested anything, the old Ella would have done it, "I mean, you know I'll do anything you want."

"Gazzy will be perfect for you," she smiled with self-pride. I bet she just _loved_ to play matchmaker. She was _so _good at it, too! She set up Iggy and Ella, and look where that got them!

"Yes, Max." I sighed. She was oblivious to my sour mood.

"Hey, where's Saw?" she asked me, "I thought you two were close. Apparently not."

I heard leaves rustling, and Saw dropped out of her tree and onto the forest floor. She landed perfectly.

"Actually, we were just having a conversation before you came tromping along," she said blankly. Saw leaned in and whispered something into Max's ear.

With my mutant hearing, I was able to hear it, but just barely. Saw really didn't want me to hear. I guess she didn't know the extent of my hearing.

"Watch your back, Maximum," Saw hissed into Max's ear, "Because I will protect Ella no matter what. If you stand in between me and her, I will take you down. Ella is family to me, and she always ends up getting hurt when you're involved. So watch your back, because when you let your guard down…"

"Oh, don't worry," Max glared at Saw. Even if she was stupid, Saw was stepping over the line, "I bet I can protect Ella just fine."

"We'll see," Saw sniffed before walking away. I was touched that Saw actually felt something for me. If I could choose a big sister, I'd choose Saw. Instead, I was stuck with Max.

Max was so stupid. She has been ever since she hooked up with Fang the first time. Her head's been clouded, her decisions wrong, and her leadership has been whacked up. She threatened Angel once, for crying out loud!

Iggy used me. That requires no further explanation.

Angel manipulated her family into doing whatever she wants. She thinks that she's the greatest mutant in the world. She is egotistical and rude.

Fang broke hearts everywhere he went. He broke Max's heart three times and he broke Maya's heart. He does nothing but distract Max, which led her to her imminent death.

Nudge never stopped talking. Her thought process is messed up. She is of no importance. She does not deserve to take up space.

Gazzy confused me. He is a year older than me, and I feel attached to him. If a Hunter is attached to anyone, then they have a right to kill said person. He will die.

They will all pay for their mistakes. Every single one of them.


	14. Listening

**Max was OOC in the last chapter. I fixed that. Thanks for bringing it to my attention, guys!**

**And 'Stuff is ISH', thank you. No, I'm not mad at your review for The Expiration Date. A little sad, but definitly not mad. Your review wasn't a flame. It was constructive critism. And I thought you should know that while I will not be changing the story because of your review, it's only because I've gone so far that I can't go back and redue everything now.**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

I woke up slightly before dawn and stepped out into the hallway. Saw was also in the hallway. She was leaning against the wall, waiting for me.

The Flock never woke up before 9 AM unless they had something to do, and just to make sure we weren't caught sneaking out, we snuck a sleeping drug into their drinks last night. They won't be waking up until about one.

"Leech sent me a message," Saw whispered, "We're to meet the group at a Starbucks at the bottom of the mountain. You up for a fly?"

"Of course," I smirked and opened a window. I jumped out of it and let myself get dangerously close to the ground before snapping out my wings and soaring high into the sky. Saw appeared next to me.

"Show off," she snorted, "Want to race there?"

"You know I'll win," I teased. I was incredibly fast, after all. It was something to do with being related to Max.

"You're on," she bantered before zooming out of sight. She had the real advantage because she knew where we were going. I flew like a bullet and tried to catch up with her but it was hard. She had a big head start. I saw a small town in the distance. I knew where we were heading now, so I didn't have to tail her.

I grinned as I put on an extra burst of speed and overtook Saw. Her shocked face amused me and infuriated her. She strained herself and got a bit ahead of me. I pushed myself and got was even with her. We were neck and neck as we landed right outside the coffee shop.

"I was betting on you, Saw." Leech chuckled as we stepped inside the store, "I'm slightly disappointed."

"Hey, why is the Starbucks even open right now?" I wondered, "Store hours aren't that early."

"The manager is a scientist," Monyka told me as she sat at a table with a coffee in her hands, "You want a coffee?"

"Sure," I shrugged and Monyka handed me one. I sat beside her.

"It's vanilla," she informed me and I took a large sip of it. Yum.

"Thanks," I smiled in small gratitude. Ada was sitting on Monyka's other side. Saw sat beside me and Leech sat in between her and Ada.

"So how is the infiltration going?" Leech asked us.

"They've all welcomed me," I answered before taking another sip of my coffee, "Other than a few brief altercations, everything has been running smoothly. I hate playing weak, though."

"Altercations?" Monyka was interested, "What happened?"

"Gazzy knew about how Iggy was using me and got in a fight with him about it. That provided the perfect excuse for me to break up with him. And to Max's wishes, I am to give the Gasman a chance." I grimaced.

"How old is he?" Ada asked, "I didn't have a chance to read his records."

"He's fifteen and I'm fourteen," I scowled, "To Max, it was a match made in heaven. We're both background figures and we're both the weakest in the Flock. It's true for him, but not for me."

"It makes the mission easier, though." Leech pointed out, "You'll be less likely to kill him before you're supposed to."

"Maybe," I snorted. I still wouldn't mind ripping someone to shreds.

"I had an altercation with Maximum," Saw shared, "She is wary of me now."

"Saw," Monyka groaned, "You know how important this mission is!"

"It was just a minor altercation," Saw shrugged, "And since Ella likes me, Maximum is forced to put up with me."

"Good," Ada said, "We don't want the mission endangered."

"Wait," I was confused, "Shouldn't you have known this already? The house is bugged!"

"Your wrist cuffs that emit a signal to mislead Angel are interfering with the signals," Monyka grimaced, "It's irritating because we have no idea what you're up to."

"Back on topic, we need to tell you when the ambush will take place," Leech said, "It will be one week from today at the large clearing where Ari is buried."

"Understood," Saw said and we stood up.

"We have to get going before we're noticed." I informed them, "We drugged them, but it won't last for much longer."

Monyka gave my hand a small squeeze, "Think you can make it?"

I nodded surely, "Of course! Don't act like Max! I'm Ella!"

She nodded and chuckled, "Yeah. You _are_ one of the strongest mutants I know."

"I'll see you in a week," I smirked and walked out of the Starbucks with a new swagger in my step.

**(HAHAHA! SOMEONE WAS LISTENING IN TO THEIR CONVERSATION!)**

**GAZZYPOV**

I put down my earphones in shock. I knew that something in Ella had changed while she was gone, and I liked her better for it. I just never thought that she had changed _this _much.

I hadn't eaten or drank anything last night. I was too nervous over my fight with Iggy. I had also put a listening device into her hat. I had heard everything.

I knew two things now because of it. One, I had a week to live. Moreover, I had one week to make Ella fall in love with me.


	15. Waterfall

**Ooh! Pennycat promised me one thousand lollipops if I updated! I definitely accept bribes!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

**ELLAPOV**

I brushed my hair yet again and hid the grimace that had been etched on my face for an hour. Since Max just loved playing matchmaker, she had convinced Gazzy to take me on a stroll in the woods. Apparently, tromping into the woods was the only thing that these cretins did for fun besides flying.

Gazzy appeared at my door, "You ready, Ella?"

"Of course," I said. My voice sounded neutral, not like how the old Ella used to be. I needed to fix that, "I mean, of course!"

"Right," he sighed and walked out and marched down the stairs. Taking the hint, I followed him. Everyone, including Saw, had gone into town for a grocery run. I think Saw was going to split off to grab a coffee where Leech was pretending to work.

We hiked for about an hour off the course of the trails. We made small talk for awhile, but then quit when it became unnecessary.

Gazzy decided to talk again, "I'm going to show you one of my favorite places. Only I know about it because it's really hidden."

He led us to a small break in the forest where a medium sized waterfall roared. It wasn't that impressive. It wasn't even big.

"This is great!" I bubbled.

"It's behind the waterfall," he explained. Had he seen through my façade, or did he plan to explain that all along? We edged behind the steady flow of water and into a small cave. We couldn't hear anything on the outside, and no one would be able to hear us.

"I really like you, Ella," he told me as he sat down against one of the walls of the cave. He made no move to touch me and for that I was grateful, "And I know that you don't like me."

"But I'm here with you now, aren't I?" I pointed out.

"Max told you to," he smiled in response, "Back when you didn't have wings, I really liked you. You had your sights set on Iggy though, so you never noticed. You were always this bubbly girl who faced the bullies at her school without a second thought. The girl who bandaged up our wounds. You were the girl who saved us, even when I was the only one who realized it. Something changed, and it was for the better, I-"

"Please shut up," I cut him off, "I mean, you don't have to say anymore! I really like you, too!"

He stared at me in irritation, "Let me finish. Something changed. You developed a backbone. You can make decisions. There's a spark in your eyes that wasn't there before. Whenever that spark tries to come out, however, you force it back and try to revert yourself to how you were before. I asked myself, why does she do that? So I decided to find out."

I glared at him, "Really, shut up. You wouldn't understand."

"And if I did, you'd have to kill me," he chuckled. I blinked. What did he just say?

"What?" I asked in shock. Did he know? No, he couldn't possibly know. Saw and I wouldn't tell the mission. No one would.

He smiled wickedly at my shocked expression, "Geez Ells, it's an expression. Don't you know how to take a joke?"

I had a gut feeling that he wasn't telling the entire truth, but I couldn't afford to question him without sounding suspicious or even worse- giving away the entire mission.

"Funny," I cracked a smile, "Now let's get back to the house. The others might get worried."

"Sure thing, Ella," he sighed and stood up. He walked out of the cave and I followed him stiffly. Then something totally unthinkable happened.

I slipped. I do not slip. I just don't. I'm a Hunter, and Hunters don't slip on wet ground. I was just really on edge from Gazzy's joke. I wasn't paying attention, so that was my downfall. Literally.

Gazzy whipped around when he heard me make impact with the ground. He held out his right and I took it with my left. His hand felt so warm and soft that as soon as I made contact with it, I pulled away. I didn't need his help to get up.

I did a ninja move that everyone always sees on TV. I got completely on my back, rolled my weight onto my neck, and used my momentum to flip myself onto my feet.

"Woah," he said as he saw me do my trick, "How'd you do that?"

"Uh…Saw taught me. I'm definitely not good at it, though. It's way too hard. It's a beginner's move," I bluffed, "Now, I'm really tired. Can we go home now?"

"Of course," he smiled with withheld secrets and led the way back to Max's house.


	16. Fly

**Queen of Narnia think of Ella falling in love with Gazzy as a dying man's wish. If you were dying, wouldn't you want your crush to fall in love with you?**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

"I was thinking that we should go out on a family fly today, think you're up to it?" Max asked me. Saw and I had decided that we could show off a bit since they already trusted us.

"I'm up to it," I munched on a cookie, happy at the idea of showing them all whose boss.

"Are you sure?" Max fussed, "If you're too tired…"

"She said that she's up to it," Saw said quietly, "Ella doesn't lie."

I silently snickered. I don't fully lie…like, if someone asked me if I was a Hunter intent on the purpose of destroying the Flock, I wouldn't say no. I just withhold the truth.

"Of course," max nodded, "What was I thinking? I would see right through it if Ella lied."

"Of course you would!" I said sweetly. Saw sent me a discreet look that was full of the laughter that she never let out.

"Do you even have wings?" Max asked Saw. I guess Max hadn't ever seen Saw fly.

"Yeah. They mixed a rabid hummingbird with human and got me." Saw shrugged. Huh. I never knew that Saw was a hummingbird. I never would have guessed either. Hummingbirds were just so…happy. Though that did explain why Saw could fly as fast as me.

"So do you want to go now?" Max asked us, "You can go warm up if you need to."

I shrugged, "Sure. You go get the others and Saw and I will go ahead."

Saw and I walked out the door and into the wide backyard. I opened my raven wings and Saw opened her colorful green ones. Seriously, how had I _not_ noticed that before?

We took a running start and entered the air just as the Flock jumped out their windows. Amateurs.

"We should go slow because of Ella," I heard Max say to Fang. He grunted in reply.

"You won't need to do that," I said innocently before using my top speed to loop around everyone. Before they could blink, I was back where I was.

"How did you do that?" max blinked in shock. Hm, maybe I _did _ overdo it a bit.

For some odd reason, Gazzy knew that he had to cover for me, "I taught her."

I blinked pleasantly, "I can fly fast because I'm related to you."

"That's nice," Max once again settled into her oblivious state. I don't know if she was naturally stupid, or smart because her subconscious is making her not notice the differences between my old self and me.

We all flew lazily around the forest and Gazzy and I split off to where no one, not even Saw, could hear us.

"How did you know that you needed to cover for me?" I demanded.

He smirked, "I have my secrets and you have yours. But maybe your secrets aren't as secretive as you think."

I froze and dropped a foot before remembering to flap, "Do you…know?"

"Know what?" he teased me before flying back to the others. I put this again the the back of my head, but for the rest of the day a question bothered me.

Did Gazzy know?


	17. Plan

**Yay! I just finished one of my favorite books! It's called Wicked. It's about a blood feud between witches, soul mates, past lives, and death! Does anyone have a book suggestion for me to read?**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

It was Halloween today and we'd take down the Flock in two days. Everyone had forgotten to pick out costumes, so we were going to the store later today. Meanwhile, I had to sit through a lecture that Max was giving to _only me_ on safety.

"Don't talk to strangers. Don't get into strangers' cars. Don't go anywhere with strangers. Make sure that you're always with someone you know. Don't go anywhere alone." Max told me sternly.

"Yes Max," I put a smile onto my face, "Thank you for looking after me."

"Who else would do it?" Max chuckled, "You're just a little girl. You need to be told this. Now, who are you going to partner with?"

Max was partnering with Fang of course, Iggy and Saw were staying at the house, and Nudge and Angel were partnering. That left me with…Gazzy. Damn, they had all probably planned this.

"Gazzy," I answered dutifully. I distracted myself by imagining Saw snapping poor Max's head while she screamed her head off.

"Oh really?" Max smiled widely, "I had no idea that you'd be going with him."

Had her brain gone to mush? Or did her lies just seem so see-through because I was now trained to see through them?

"Should we go to the costume store now?" I changed the subject. I couldn't take this anymore.

Max stood straight up, "Yes! Thank you for reminding me, Ella!"

We walked briskly outside and gathered everyone that was going trick-or-treating. We all loaded into the car but I hesitated as Max loaded into the driver's seat.

"Actually Max, I have my driver's license," I said slowly, "Do you mind if I drive?"

"_You _have a driver's license," Max said disbelievingly.

"Yes," I answered. I had gotten it at the School. Though it's mundane compared to what we normally do, driving is something that we needed to learn.

Max shrugged, "Oh fine. The car's as good as totaled anyway."

She got into th backseat and I slid into the driver's seat. There was a collection of sighs in relief when the Flock saw that Max wasn't driving.

"You can drive?" Gazzy said in surprise, "Cool!"

"Thanks Gazzy," I said warmly but then stopped. What? His praise didn't mean anything to me!

I drove smoothly all the way to the costume store and the others could actually _carry a conversation_ without screaming at the horrible driving. Driving was yet another thing that was beyond Max's range of ability.

"You're a really good driver," Angel said sweetly as she opened the door and stepped out. I turned the car off. Everyone stepped out.  
"You actually _are _a good driver," Max said in astonishment. I fought with myself to strap my temper down. I, of course, won.  
"Let's go choose our costumes," Gazzy linked his arm through mine, "We'll see if there's anything good left."

As he wheeled me away from the others, he whispered in my ear, "I felt like you needed a break from her."

I let out a small laugh, "You could tell?"

"You get this small twitch in your eyebrow whenever she treats you like a little kid, which is a lot," he chuckled, "Now I have to ask you a question. Who do you like hanging out with more? The Flock…or me?"

"You don't include yourself in the Flock?" I asked in surprise.

"Let me just say…they've lost their quality. Angel is sweeter, I guess, but she's lost her Angel-ness. The same for the rest of them." He smiled wistfully.  
"Exactly," I gasped, "They've lost all of their personality!"

"It's like they're not even here anymore!" he agreed. Hanging with Gazzy really wasn't all that bad.

We headed to a rack of mismatched costumes. Instantly, I spotted two costumes. The first was a pink medieval princess that everyone would expect me to wear. The other was a purple and black, mid thigh witch's dress. With some smoky black eyeliner and lipstick, I could look smoldering! I wish I could wear this, but the mission was more important. I sighed and once again looked at the princess dress with distaste.

"Get the purple dress," Gazzy smiled at me, "It seems more…you."

"Really?" I raised my eyebrows at him.

"The others might be a bit surprised, but they don't have to see you in it if you don't want them to." He shrugged and brought out a magician's outfit.

"What do you think?" he asked me. I looked at it. On Gazzy, it may look…cute.

"Try it on," I suggested, "I'll do the same."

We headed into the dressing rooms and I slipped into my witch's costume. It fit perfectly and accented me curves. I pulled out some of my black makeup from my purse and applied it. I looked _awesome_! I might actually _thank_ Gazzy for seeing past who I used to be and liking the person I…oh my god. No. This isn't good.

I was getting sappy.

I fell for Gazzy.

I don't see what's wrong with the above statement.

I already was planing ways for us both to live.

I stepped out of the dressing room and saw Gazzy waiting for me. He looked like the Mad Hatter in his magician's hat and suit. He saw my stricken expression and his became worried.

"What's wrong?" he asked me and took my hand.

"I need to go to our Waterfall," I said quietly. He nodded as if he sensed my urgency.

We changed back into our regular clothes, paid for our costumes, and walked back into the car.

"Gazzy and I are going to go for a fly," I told Max absent mindedly.

"Okay!" she said before driving off.

"Do you need help flying?" Gazzy asked me with a twinkle in his eyes. This got me out of my daze.

"Of course not!" I snapped at him, "I'm a better flyer than you on my worst day than you are on your best!"

"I know," he smirked before taking off. I gaped at him. He was _sneaky_! I smiled before starting to chase him. We played tag in the air until we arrived at the Waterfall where I lost all of my levity.

We dove through the Waterfall and crashed into the small cave.

"What's this about?" Gazzy asked softly. I gripped his arm.

"I have to kill you, Gazzy." I said, "And I don't know what to do anymore. I was so _sure_ that I could do this, but that was before I really met you."

"And now that you have?" he probed.

"I think I love you," I sighed, "I don't think it's possible to fall for someone this quickly, but I have. Or maybe I always liked you. I don't know."

"Remember the time I held your hand while you were sick?" he asked me.

I nodded, "You were always so kind."

"While everyone thought of you as just Max's sister, I saw a girl who wasn't afraid to risk herself to stand up to her friends." Gazzy chuckled.

"Are you talking about the time Max first saw me? With the boys? That was nothing," I looked down, "Ortiz didn't deserve to get beaten up."

"See? Brave." He smiled, "So what do we do now? Are you going to strangle me in my sleep, or will it be more public."

"In two days, my friends and I will kill the Flock. I have a couple options. The first is to push away my emotions and kill you. The second is to bring you back to the School as a prisoner. The third is to let someone else kill you. And the most irresponsible choice that I'm likely to do…is die."

"_What_?" Gazzy choked.


	18. Explosion

**I hope that you all participated in the Blackout yesterday! Here is your treat!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

ELLAPOV

The next day, I woke up feeling new and clean. My mind was clear, the space around me was bright, and it felt like electricity was running through my blood.

Saw was sitting at the foot of my bed, waiting for me to wake. Her long, light brown hair hung around her pale face as she watched me.

"One more day," she said calmly, "Before we have to leave."

Saw was speaking vaguely, but I understood. She obviously couldn't say what she needed to say because, as I've learned, the Flock just _loves_ to eavesdrop on private conversations.

I stretched and let out a large yawn, "It was really nice to relax."

"Was it now?" she raised an eyebrow at me, "I prefer excitement and fighting myself."

I chuckled, "Well, I'm simply too _fragile_ for that, aren't I?"

"I suppose so," she rolled her light blue eyes; "There was something I wanted to talk to you about."

"I gathered that much, seeing that you're in my room at…"I checked my crimson watch, "Six o'clock in the morning."

"You didn't go trick-or-treating last night. Did you get into any trouble?" she inquired suspiciously. Saw usually saw through my lies, but that was because I let her. I would really need to choose my next words carefully.

Making sure no micro expressions crossed my face, I smirked, "No, I just didn't feel like trick-or-treating with a bunch of kids."

"What did you do then?" she questioned. God, what was this? The Spanish Inquisition?

"Gazzy and I just went on a fly. It was dark enough," I shrugged and made sure my eyes flickered to my left when I said that. When the eyes flicker to the person's left, it indicates that they are remembering something.

"You went with Gazzy? Anything interesting happen?" she tipped her head to the side. You know what? This was not the Spanish Inquisition. It was the Witch Trials. The Salem Witch Trials. Thankfully, her eyes had gotten more confused and less suspicious. I just needed to sell it a bit more.

"No," I rolled my eyes in a very Ella-like way, "He didn't dare touch me." I needed to break eye contact. Liars often looked into the other person's eyes more than necessary to seem more sincere. I blinked and focused on a glass cup full of daisies, "I am Max's perfect daughter, after all. The only way someone would see me is if they wanted to use me."

Perfect! That last bit was pure inspiration. Saw's expression softened.

"Holy crap Ella, stop talking like that. Your family knows that you are an incomparable person." When Saw said 'Your family', I knew that she was not talking about my mother or the Flock. She was talking about my team. It was going to hurt a lot when we separated.

Small tears laced the edges of my vision, but I willed them not to fall, "Thanks Saw, but could I have a few minutes to vent. Being around the Flock…I just need to get rid of the old Ella."

"It'll be good for you," Saw nodded and walked out of my crisp and clean room, visibly glad that she could be separated from this emotional tangle.

Nevertheless, even though she was uncomfortable with it, she would always listen to me when I needed her. That's why she was like my sister.

Monyka was my best friend. She always knew what to say to lift me out of one of my moods. She was so easy going around me. We could both be ruthless killing machines, but when we were together, we didn't need to be.

Ada used to be like a cousin who I barely knew, but we had been on the road to becoming friends. I wonder how she would be when I was gone. Would she still want to speak and make friends with everybody on the team, or would she become suspicious again?

Leech was a big brother to me. We shared secrets. He knew that I wasn't as strong as I seemed to be, and that Saw always threw her matches with me. I knew that he liked Saw. Who would protect his secrets now? Moreover, would he keep on protecting mine?

Four tears escaped my eyes, one for each team member. It felt like they were the only family I have ever had. The Flock and mom did not even compare.

I needed to separate myself from them or I'll die. Simple as that. No. I can't do this right now. I'll mourn when it actually happens. Right now, I need to carry on.

I wiped the tears from my eyes and got dressed. Max had lent me some clothes when I first got here to 'make me feel more at home'. I'd have rather gone shopping for clothes that aren't so baggy, but I took what I could get.

It was then that I noticed the small scrap of paper taped inconspicuously to the corner of the outside my window. I cautiously opened the window and reached out to retrieve it. The paper was smooth, thin, and familiar. Itex designed this paper and every file in the Institute was made from it.

**Hey Ella,**

**Told you we'd find ways to contact you. Prepare yourself. You should be aware of a slight change in plans. The battle is coming a bit earlier than planned. I just thought that you and Saw should not have to pretend to be a pair of goody-two-shoes any longer, not that Saw is really doing a good job of that. Just be prepared to fight at any moment. Stay in character and remember not to make the first move. You will know when it starts.**

**Say hi to Saw for me,**

**Leech**

What did he mean when he said 'earlier than planned'? Were they coming here? Were we going somewhere? Did he want Saw and I out of the house so they could blow it sky high or flood it with poisonous gas?

No. The Hunters would want to hunt. We would let them run first, and then we would catch and kill them. My plan would still work.

My door opened a bit and Iggy popped his head in.

"Hey Ella-Bella," Iggy used his old nickname for me and smiled good-naturedly. I briefly considered flipping him off, but it would be a wasted effort.

I quickly hid the paper in my shoe, even though he was blind and couldn't see.

"Go," I commanded, "I don't want to talk to you."

There were plenty of things I would like to do to him, but all of them included a knife, gun, or electrocution. Talking wasn't a part of any of my plans.

"Okay. Sorry. Max wanted me to tell you that breakfast is almost ready." He scratched the back of his head, "You know, you're not the same anymore, Ella. You're not as sweet anymore. I don't like it."

"You lost the permission to like anything about me," I said composedly and pushed past him to the breakfast table. If the battle was coming early today, then I'd need my energy.

I sat down in between Saw and Gazzy. Gazzy gave me a worried glance, but I shrugged it off. Saw cocked her head at me, silently asking me if I was okay. I nodded.

I noticed that she hadn't touched her food yet, "Saw, you'll need to eat a lot. You know that hiking trip that we were going to do tomorrow? Today's a better day for it."

She immediately caught on, "Today? You sure?"

"It's a nice day for hiking," I said before inhaling on my eggs and bacon that Iggy had probably spit in.

"You're going hiking today?" Angel asked and wrinkled her brows. Oh yes, she had developed a small sense of intuition. That's yet another reason to end her. She was corrupted.

"Yes. Is something wrong?" I placed a worried tone into my voice.

"I can't quite catch the meaning, but someone important to you is coming today," she frowned and massaged her forehead.

"Is it Mom?" Max asked excitedly. She was wearing white today; a crisp white shirt that was without grass stains, white sneakers, and white jeans. It would look cool when she was covered in blood.

Angel shook her head and her corn silk hair waved about, "No. It's no one we know."

So the battle was coming here. Saw and I met our gazes and looked away.

"I wonder who it is," I smiled pleasantly, "Maybe it's a friend from school."

Well, not school. The School, but not school.

Angel looked towards the door, and as if on cue, the doorbell rang. I jumped up.

"I'll get it," I said immediately. I wanted to see who would be initiating the battle.

I opened the heavy red, wooden door and stared with wide eyes at a girl about three feet tall with light green eyes, fair skin with a few freckles, and smooth light blond hair.

This was the form Monyka used when she was reeling in her prey, "Monyka?"

I thought that it would be Leech. If she was starting the fight, then why would Monyka use her weakest form?

Monyka grabbed my hands and discreetly slid two knives into the gray sleeves of my shirt, "Ella! It was horrible! Erasers ambushed my friends while we were trying to find you guys! You have to help!"

Ah, they were luring them out of the environment that they were comfortable in. Smart, "Right away, Monyka! Let me go get the others!"

"Please hurry!" she pleaded. I could see a glimmer of mischief in her eyes. She was enjoying this.

I rolled my eyes before making my face panicked and running back to the kitchen.

"Help!" I cried out as soon as I was in view, "My friends from the school! They were ambushed! They're fighting, but losing terribly! Help!"

They all jumped up from the table and ran towards the door. Monyka was already running towards the woods.  
"This way!" she called.

"Who's that?" Gazzy huffed as we ran side by side after her.

"My friend." I replied blankly, "You go on ahead."

I added in a small voice, "But don't get too far away."

He nodded and ran right to Monyka. I slackened my pace and Saw did the same, so that we were bringing up the rear. We were herding them now. They were the sheep and we were the dogs.

We all burst into the clearing at once. It was a perfect circle, full of grass as green as a lime, and empty.

Max stiffened and looked at Monyka suspiciously, "Where are your friends?"

"It's a trap," Fang concluded.

"That little girl is going to take us on, all by herself? But she's so small! I bet she doesn't even have a power!" Nudge rolled her eyes.

"Actually," I reveled in the sound of my real voice, with my real emotions. It was filled with malice, hate, and victory, "She's not alone. You've been hanging with your murderers _all week_."

They all looked at me in amazement and I let the knives slide out of my sleeves.

"You?" Iggy snorted, "You couldn't hurt a fly!"

"Not _just_ her," Saw interjected, "Though she _is_ one of our best Hunters. There's me, Monyka, Leech, and Ada."

"Then where are the others?" Max sneered. I felt movement behind me and the whisper of trees as two people jumped down from their perches.

"Hello. Now girls, are you done lecturing them? I'd like to play chase." Leech said pleasantly. I could _feel_ him glaring at Fang.

I noticed Angel edging away from the field. She didn't underestimate us. She met my gaze in a terrified way and I looked away. She was Monyka's kill. If she died, it wouldn't be by my hand. Angel kept creeping away.

"Who gets first kill?" Ada asked quietly.

"I do," I snarled before stepping up closer to the Flock. They shrank in fear. I walked up to Gazzy…

And pushed him back.

"Out of my way," I spat before standing in front of Iggy. I got into a battle position.

"You guys can play chase, now. I don't need an audience," I breathed and focused on Iggy's terrified expression. I would like to remember this forever.

I smashed the butt of the knife into Iggy's eyes.

"That would have blinded you, if you weren't blind already. Failure," I snarled at him and hooked one of my feet around his knees and sent him crashing down.

"Please, Ella," he breathed in petrified fear, "Please stop. I…"

"You what?" I breathed furiously, "Do you think that you don't deserve this?"  
"I don't!" he agreed. I shrieked and emitted a very high-pitched frequency. I heard glass cracking from a house nearby.

"Shut up Ella!" Monyka cried out, "I can't track her when you're doing that!"

I shut my mouth and gritted my teeth. I lifted myself off Iggy.

"Run," I hissed. I wanted to give him a sense of freedom before I ended him.

"What?" he asked in shock. He was not stupid enough to wait for an answer, though. He scrambled to his feet and started running. When I felt that he was really experiencing his victory, I threw one of the knives and pinned him by his arm to a tree. I threw the other and it laced itself through his heart.

I looked around. Leech had forced Fang onto his knees and was sucking the power out of him. He then smirked and transformed his hand into a flat, light blue and curved knife. It seems that he had sucked out a few more powers that are useful in his off time. Leech dragged the knife down Fang's face, ripping the skin off. Fang was remaining silent to the last. He grit his teeth as his skin was ripped to shreds. I wished that he would faint soon. Then he wouldn't be in so much pain.

Monyka was nowhere to be seen. She was most likely tracking Angel. I hadn't heard Angel scream yet, so either she had gotten away or Monyka had taken her by surprise. Since Monyka wanted to torture her, I would think that she had gotten away.

Ada was fighting Nudge, but badly losing, Nudge had gotten ahold of Ada's knife. Nudge forced the knife into Ada's stomach, twisting it. Ada kept fighting. I averted my eyes.

Saw was in her demon form. Her hair was floating, her skin was paler than a vampire was, and her eyes were a shiny black. She was using her razor-sharp claws to rip Max's stomach open. Max was convulsing on the ground and screaming, not for her but for her family.

It was then that I knew it. I had been so wrong. My mind had twisted the words others say to me so that they sound condescending. What I heard was not what they were saying. If Max said 'do you need help', my ears heard 'you're too weak, so you need help'.

I was a monster.

A hand tapped on my shoulder and I turned to face him.

"You ready?" he smirked.

"I don't have any more knives, so I'll have to fight you with only myself. Will that be a problem?" I asked breathlessly.

He shook his head, "No. I'm good."

We'd have to hurry up. The other's were halfway done with their victims. They were torturing them.

We threw fake punches at each other before Gazzy slipped up and broke my nose.

"Ow!" I said in shock and touched the blood on my face. Hm. This was just what we needed.

"You're prey! Stay still!" I screeched at him and lunged. He sidestepped and brought out a small ball of wires and other miscellaneous junk that he had created last night. He threw the ball in the air.  
"Sorry, sweetie. Looks like it's Game Over for both of us." He said wistfully before the bomb exploded. Something hit my head and the world that had once been filled with tons of dirt clots in the air was now black.


	19. Angel

**Here's a short chapter on what's going on with the likes of Angel right now!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

_Run,_ I commanded myself, _You've had worse than this. You have to run!_

I pushed myself faster and darted through the forest in a flash, _Pretend I'm Max_. Max was dead. I felt her mind go blank before she was lost forever. _Don't think about that. Just run_. I put on even more speed and felt my muscles burn. I could hear mind getting closer. She was following my footprints, rather than the sound I was making or smell.

_That's it_, I almost exploded with joy. I changed course and ran uphill. Gazzy and I had discovered this place a month or two ago. Soon, I came across a river that was running downhill. I jumped in it and fought against the current. I had to have enough time, I had to!

My wet, blond hair got in my face and I pushed it back. Almost there…

I made it! I dove under the water, breathed in using my gills, and pushed myself into a small hole that led to a tiny labyrinth underground. I burst through into the air filled cavern and jumped onto the rocky land. I had to keep moving.

I ran through the tunnels, making sure that I knew where I was going. It wouldn't make any sense to escape that…that _thing_ that called itself a little girl just to die from starvation just because I couldn't find my way back out.

Suddenly, I felt the ground rumble and an electrical pulse went through me. I fell to my knees, and then fell flat on my face. I felt like I was frozen in time.

_I've been stunned_, I realized, _She found me. I can't fight her now._


	20. Murderer

**ELLAPOV**

I woke up and found myself face down on the ground. Gazzy was leaning over me and holding my head. I sat up and brushed the dirt out of my hair.

"You okay?" he asked in a worried tone.

"What kind of bomb was that?" I complained. I thought he was going to make one of his useless bombs that just makes a plume of smoke.

"This thing?" he held up the mess of wires that was still intact, "That's just a prop. I set up multiple stun bombs in the forest that got everyone. You were just unlucky and got hit by a flying rock."

I stood up and decided that there was no use in trying to clean myself before I had water to use. Near my feet, I found a knife. It must have flown out of someone's grip during the explosion.

"Perfect," I retrieved the knife and hacked off some of my hair.

"What are you doing?" Gazzy asked dubiously. I gritted my teeth as I also slashed my hand open and had my blood drip all over the place.

"They'll do a DNA test and conclude that we got blown to smithereens," I explained and handed him the knife. He nodded and cut his arm open. He let the blood drip down his arm, between his fingers, and onto a pool in the ground. When I decided enough had been spilt, I bandaged him up.

I saw Leech twitch. He was close to waking up.

"We have to go. Now," I whispered in a panic and started running through the woods. Gazzy ran after me.

"Have any other secret hiding places?" I huffed as we ran.

"Yes!" he confirmed, "This way!"

He led us in a new direction. This one didn't have as many twigs in our path, or grass. That was good. We wouldn't leave noticeable footprints.

He led me to a river bank where I saw a familiar mass of golden and brown curls. She was lying prone on a bed of pebbles.

"Monyka!" I gasped. She was stuck in her halfway form. She must have been stunned just as she transformed.

"She won't wake up for awhile. She was really close to one of my bombs," Gazzy soothed me, "But she will wake up."

I nodded and he had me dive underwater into a secret entrance. The water was very clear, and I could see the white, sandy bottom that was full of trinkets.

When we broke the surface, I asked him about them. Bracelet charms and gems don't belong on the bottom of rivers.

His face was sad for a moment, "Angel put them there."

"Oh," I said quietly. I shouldn't have killed Iggy. I shouldn't have.

"You did what you had to do, which ended up saving us," he tilted my chin up and kissed me on the lips, "Now help my block the entrance."

We each took a side of a large circular rock and plugged it into the entrance to this underground maze.

"We can camp out here for a few days," he stretched out, "Until things calm down. Come one. I'll show you my favorite room."

I nodded and he took my hand. We went along one tunnel that was obviously used a lot. I noticed that one of the sets of footprints was very fresh.

"Gazzy, what was the last time you came here?" I asked hesitantly.

"A few weeks ago," he answered in surprise, "Why do you want to know?"

I pointed at the small footprints that looked like they were running from the length apart from each one to the next, "Those were made less than a half an hour ago."

Gazzy blinked and froze, "Oh my…Angel!"

He started sprinting down the dark tunnel and I hurried to keep up with him. He twisted along many turns and I almost tripped over him when he abruptly stopped.

Angel was lying on the ground as if she had been thrown there. Her knees were scraped, her face was scratched, and it looks like one arm was dislocated, but she was alive.

Gazzy bent down to pick her up, "She must have gotten caught in one of my stun bombs."

"Her shoulder's dislocated," I informed him, "We need to lay her down so I can fix it."

He nodded and started jogging back through the tunnels and into a cavern filled with tons of colorful pillows and stuffed animals. I saw a bear with a faded pink tutu and a wand. Celeste?

Gazzy laid Angel on a pile of pink cushion and I knelt beside her, "This is going to hurt, but it's going to hurt a lot more if it's done while you're conscious."

I made sure that her arm was perpendicular to her body. Since she was unconscious, her muscles were nice and relaxed. Good. I bent her elbow at ninety degrees and rotated the arm slowly so that it made an 'L' facing her chest. I patiently rotated the arm away from her chest and felt Angel's shoulder pop back into place. She sighed in relief. I smiled faintly and placed both of her arms over her chest.

"How did you do that?" Gazzy raised his eyebrows in amazement and relief that his sister was okay.

"I wasn't the best at fighting or the most angry, so I was the one who mainly fixed up everyone's injuries," I looked away from him, "I'm just not cut out for the Hunter lifestyle, I guess."

"That's nothing to be ashamed of," Gazzy said gently.

"I wish I hadn't been a Hunter," I sniffed and put my arms around myself, "I realized that too late. My sister is _dead_, and it's my fault."

Gazzy shook his head and bent down to my height, "No. You saved two lives today. Let me ask you a question, if it wasn't for you, would there still be Hunters?"

I shook my head, "I don't see where you're going with this."

"Even if you weren't a Hunter, there would still _be_ Hunters. A Hunter would have infiltrated us and killed us without a second thought. You didn't, which saved us," he explained.

I shook my head, "I…just need to be alone for a bit."

I walked out of the colorful cave and found myself another one that was purely empty. I settled myself against one of the cave walls.

I am a murderer.


	21. Conversations

**Hm, what name should I go by as my alias? MF (snicker), Jezebel, or Vivian? I'm thinking Jezebel or Vivian. What's your opinion?**

**Pennycat, I haven't been hearing on how the bees are doing. Have they put in their plan to demolish our world and enslave our people, or has my awesome writing stopped them?**

**Without Further Adieu,**

I felt Gazzy put his arms around me. I don't know how I knew, but I did.

"I ran away from my family," I shuddered. I ran away from the Hunters. They, besides Gazzy, were the only ones who really understood me.

Gazzy was confused for a moment, "The Flock?"

I sighed. Gazzy would never really understand this aspect of my life, "No. I never ran from them. The Hunters were my family, _are_ my family. They think I'm dead."

"That's good," he tried to tell me, "They'll never find us."

"Exactly," I leaned into his grip rather than pushing away, "Gaz, they're my brothers and sisters. They are my Flock. I already miss them terribly."

"Do you wish that you had done your job as you should have?" he whispered softly, trying to hide the fear in his voice. I saw it anyway.

"No," I shook my head even though it was unnecessary, "Definitely not. I'm glad that Angel is alive, too. It's just that…" I trailed off. I couldn't pin down my emotions well enough to describe the situation.

Gazzy sighed and nodded against my hair, "No matter what they do, you will love them with all of your heart. It doesn't matter if they kill, if they steal, or if they've gone dark. You will always love them."

I turned around and stared at him with sad surprise. Maybe he did know what I was going through. He expressed what I was going through so well.

"How do you know?" I took in his sad but also joyful features. The room would be pitch black to him, but dark would never again be dark for me. The tests I had been through were too through for that.

"You," he said, almost tenderly, "You, Ella Martinez. If I weren't terribly in love with you, I'd be appalled that you killed Iggy. I'm sad because I know that you're remorseful for doing it, but I can't hold it against you."

I sucked in my breath. He told me that he loved me. I was about to return the favor when Angel screamed.

I jumped up and ran out of the cave. I memorized the path from where I was to the cave where she resided, so I had no difficulty getting to her immediately.

"Get away from me!" she shrieked and backed herself up against the cave wall farthest from me. Her normally glowing blond locks were dirty with tears and her face was dirty with her blood from various cuts. The cuts were jagged, so I concluded that they were from branches whipping her face and not from Monyka. Her clothes were ripped and dirty from times she'd fallen down.

Gazzy appeared behind me and gasped at her appearance, "Angel…"  
"Get away from her!" Angel screamed at him and pointed at me, "She's a Hunter!"

Her screams were echoing around the tunnels and cavern. If this continued, the others would hear her.

"I am a Hunter," I agreed, "But I realized that I'm not cut out for the Hunt. But if you keep screaming like that, then the others will come. It will likely be Monyka, the shapeshifter who was chasing you. Read my mind if you don't believe me.

I remained perfectly still and calm as I felt her shift through my thoughts. She started from now and worked backwards. She saw my turmoil at being a murderer, Iggy's death, infiltrating the Flock, my family, training, and she cut off from where I left the Flock to go get my wings.

She glared at me, "You could be lying with your thoughts,_ Ella_." She said my name through a snarl, like it didn't fit me anymore.

"If I had stayed true to my mission, I would have ratted you out as you ran away. If I had stayed true to my mission, all of you would be dead." I looked away from her, "I couldn't let that happen."

"You brainwashed my brother," she snarled, but her body was still shivering with fear. I shared a look with Gazzy that obviously said to take care of her.

I stared evenly at Angel, "I am in _love_ with your brother."

Gazzy was wrapping a blanket around Angel, which she tried to refuse. He instantly became happier among my statement, which made me happy in return.

"Angel," Gazzy patted her head, "Try to trust her. If you don't, you never have to be alone with her. But she did save us in a way. You've read her mind and you can tell that she isn't hiding anything. You know she speaks the truth."

Angel's eyes never left mind as he talked, and I could see that she crumbled against the logic of his words. She was extremely tired and in pain.

"We all know how fast a mind can change," she glared at me, then sighed, "But I trust my brother. I'm keeping you on my watch at all times,"

I nodded, "Okay. I can live with that."

Angel nodded, "Okay. We'll need to get out of here soon. The Hunters are thinking that you and Gazzy are dead, but they know that I'm still alive. They'll comb the area where Monyka lost me, which will lead them to the tunnels. We need to be far away from here when that happens."

My eyebrows heightened, "Why didn't I think of that?"

"I don't know. Maybe in the time between the explosion and now you suddenly became stupider?" she glared at me, "There's a tunnel that leads to the sewers from here. We can travel from there to a train station where we can go somewhere safe."

"Port Angeles in Washington," I suggested, "Itex has no people currently stationed there."

"Then that's where we'll go," Gazzy said confidently, "Should we go now?"

"We all need to clean up a bit and put on new clothes," I said, "We'll be less noticeable."

"Max used to come here so we have some clothes that will fit you," Angel muttered, "I'll show you where they are. Gazzy, you go change and clean up."

"Are you sure that you want to be alone with her Angel?" Gazzy said slowly, as if Angel hadn't thought of what would happen.

"As I said, I trust you. That means that I'll trust _her_ for five minutes," Angel pursed her lips, "Now come with me, _Ella_."

I followed the small girl to yet another cavern. Angel reached into a box that was right inside the door and brought out two candles and some matches. She lit the candles and held one of them to me.

"Ella, I need to know something," Angel whispered as she searched through a pile of clothes for some that would fit me. Her tone had lost her abrasive edge, and was now filled with grief.

"What is it?" I almost reached for her because she sounded tormented, but she flinched as I thought that.

"Who…killed them?" Angel sighed.

"Saw killed Max. Leech killed Fang. I killed Iggy. Nudge killed one of our hunters named Ada, so I don't know who ended up killing Nudge." I purposefully blocked off images of the Flock being killed. Instead, I focused on the mental image of a kitten, something totally G rated.

"Let me see," Angel insisted, "I deserve to."  
"You deserve to know what happened," I agreed, "But you don't deserve to see your family get torn to shreds."

She stiffened, "Fine. Have it your way."

She tossed some long jeans and a hot pink, sparkled shirt at me.

"Those were Nudge's," she said blankly. I turned around and changed into them.

"How does it feel to be a murderer?" she insulted me with her question.

A tear escaped me, "Terrible."


	22. Memories

We all cleaned up and Angel led us to a deep tunnel that led to the sewers. As soon as we saw metal walls surround us that marks where we were, I looked at the others.

"Cover your ears," I commanded. They, in confusion, did as I asked. I took a deep breath and shrieked. I directed the sound waves at the tunnel entrance in front of us, and it collapsed.

"You said that you didn't have a power," Gazzy accused me playfully. Angel looked disgusted at his actions.

"She also didn't say that she was a murderer. Come on," Angel snorted angrily and continued on along the sewers, being careful to stay close to the wall so that she didn't get sucked away with the dirty water.

"Angel," I was hesitant to ask her this, "Can you hear their thoughts?"

"Yeah," she was thinking of ways to phrase what they were thinking into the meanest way possible, "They're cursing you out for not following through on your job and dying."

"Oh," I looked away and focused on not slipping.

Soon, I felt that we were getting close to our destination. I could hear trains and the ceiling rumbled above us every fifteen minutes.

"We need to go up now," Angel said, but then froze as some idea came to her. She stared at me and nodded to herself. She then looked away and climbed a ladder that led to ground level.

"What was that about?" Gazzy whispered to me and I shrugged.

"Who knows?" I said and climbed up after Angel. I found myself directly beside an Amtrak train. Gazzy let out a huff as he heaved himself over the edge and scrambled up.

"Get in. I'll convince everyone that we have tickets," Angel said and allowed us to pass. Gazzy and I found an empty room while Angel 'convinced' a passing train worker that we are legit and she doesn't need to bother us. Ever.

Angel came into the small room and slid the door closed, "This will never work if we're fighting all the time."

"What?" Gazzy was confused, and that word summed up my feelings as well. What was Angel talking about?

"Idiots," Angel spat, "Now, aren't we going to be a bit too noticeable if we're always bickering?"

"We can't really do anything about that, though," I said dryly, "It's not like any of us can turn back time."

"No, but one of us has the power to manipulate minds," she pointed out, "I could just delete all of our memories of Ella being a hunter."

"But what if we need my skills in the future?" I found a hole in her logic, "What if we're found out?"

"I can just lock the memories away. They'll come back if you see a Hunter," Angel rolled her eyes, "So, are you in?"

"Um, yeah. I guess." I shrugged, "Worth a shot, right?"

Angel was slightly pleased with my answers and put her small, childish hands on both sides of my face. I closed my eyes and let her do her work. Suddenly, I couldn't remember where I'd been for the past months. My face relaxed and gained some of its levity back.

"Ella, how are you feeling?" my crush, Gazzy, said in a worried tone. My eyes flickered open and I found myself lying on a bed and it felt like I was on a train.

"You are," Angel picked the thought out of my mind and answered it. Her hair was kind of long and her eyes looked angry for some reason.

"Ella, just go back to sleep. When you wake up, everything will make sense," Gazzy stroked my hair and eventually, I succumbed again to the darkness.

When I woke up for the second time, everything was so much clearer. Gazzy and Angel were both awake and staring at me. Tears laced my vision.

"Those people…they killed the Flock," I whispered in shock, "How could they?"

"I don't know," Gazzy shook his head and looked at me as if he was trying to remember something. The last thing I really talked to him was a year or two ago, when he held my hand when I was sick in bed. It felt like more had happened, but neither of us remembered.

"Hi Gazzy," I said shyly. Wait. This felt…wrong. Too soft, somehow, but this was how I'd been my whole life. Maybe I could just change a little bit, "So what's up?"

"Hey Ella," he smiled warmly. I saw Angel looking at us with pleasure in her eyes.

"Guys, I'm…feeling faint. If I fall asleep, then don't try to wake me up, okay?" she smiled thinly. She _did_ look a bit pale.

"Of course," I snorted, "If you feel sick, it's not like we're going to be dragging you halfway across the country."

"Looks like you didn't forget your personality," she grumbled and closed her eyes. Her face immediately relaxed and her skin started to regain color.

"Wait, how did we get on this train?" I stopped to wonder, "Those people attacked us…"

"They were called hunters," Gazzy remembered, "And we ran away from them. I led you here where we found Angel."

"Oh yeah," I nodded as I remembered seeing her lying down on the floor of a cave, "I remember that."

But if that was real, then Max was dead. My sister was dead. So were my new brothers and sisters. And Iggy…my boyfriend…

I leaned back against the wall heavily and squeaked in pain. I turned around, but didn't see anything that I could've bumped in to. The spot in between my shoulder blades was sore.

"Oh wow," Gazzy gasped, "Ella, you have wings!"

"I do?" I said in surprise and looked at my back, "Oh my god, I do!"

I shrugged out of my shirt, leaving me in just my pink bra and stared at the gigantic wings on my back. They were really long, a shining black, and looked incredibly fast.

"I-I remember now," I gasped, "I ran away and went to the school and Jeb put wings on me…I must've escaped."

"And then you found your way to our house, like the Hunters did," Gazzy's fair face lit up with wonder, "Whoa. How did we not remember this before?"

"Shock?" I guessed and Gazzy nodded blankly. I heard that when you're in shock, you think slower than usual and you take in a lot of detail. I was looking at everything as if it was new. Gazzy's shining blue eyes followed me everywhere I went in the tiny room.

"Why are you staring at me?" I chuckled in disbelief that I actually had his attention. I was never really close to Gazzy. When I realized that I had a crush on him, I was already dating Iggy.

"Uh, Ella…" Gazzy's pale face flooded with a deep red blush, "Can I…kiss you?"

"Um…what?" I blinked in shock. Gazzy wanted to _kiss_ me? Those bad people had killed my boyfriend, but wasn't this going too fast? Iggy was always so loyal to me. Shouldn't I wait to grieve.

Gazzy's face flooded with shame and he looked away, "Nothing. Never mind. I can see that you don't like me back."

"I never said that!" I exclaimed, "But Iggy just…died…and…"

"Some other time, then?" Gazzy said hopefully and I looked away. I couldn't think about this right now.

Just then, Angel's eyes opened up and flooded with tears. She launched herself towards me because I was closest to her and she landed in my lap.

"Th-that girl…she k-killed-d Max-x," Angel sniffed. I hesitated, but then wrapped my wings around Ella in a hug.

"It'll be okay," I cooed, "What's done is done, but we got away from them. Don't worry."

"Are we g-going to b-be ok-kay?" she sobbed into my shoulder, "What if-f th-they find-d us?"

"They won't," I promised her, "And if they do, we'll get away again. You'll see. We're a family, Angel."

"My family is dead," she wailed and I wrapped her tighter in my hug.

Gazzy came up to us and hugged both of us with his wings as well, "No. Some of us are lost, but you will never lose all of your family."

"Ever," I agreed as tears for the family I had lost slipped out of my own eyes.


	23. Chapter 23

**So sorry! Internet's down.**

**Bobo, I AM SUPER SORRY, but by the time you gave me your tribute, all of the girl spots were already taken.**

**Pennycat, I am so happy for you! And what about your story 'Flying in Love'? No, I **_**haven't**_** forgotten about that story. And I want to read it! But of course, Max is kicked out of the Flock stories are always good. Will you let me beta?**

**Without Further Adieu,**

I placed Angel in Gazzy's arms, and they both fell asleep on the compact and rather uncomfortable bed. They looked so much alike each other, even if you looked past their looks. They were both kind and loyal. I was glad that they had somehow both survived the attack that the Hunters had orchestrated. Suddenly, my mind expanded enough to let me see a year that I had forgotten but not missed. Satisfying images, dark images, and muddled images worked themselves into my brain.

I am a Hunter.

I gasped and clutched my head as a flood of memories came back. I'm a Hunter. My objective was to take down the Flock. I fell in love with Gazzy. I protected Gazzy. I met up with Angel. She tried to lock away our memories. With me, she failed. Now, wouldn't she just read my mind and remember everything that happened?

My eyes brightened with an idea, and I smirked. I dug out the metal wristband that masked my thoughts from Angel's the first time from my back pocket and found a screwdriver in a pile of Gazzy's stuff.

I went to work on the steel bracelet. First, I took out the screws that held it together. Then I located the tracker that was placed inside it and sent out a blast of my supersonic shriek at it, cracking the tracker into several pieces. Finally, I put it back together and snapped it onto my left wrist, confident that it would still work.

Gazzy groaned and woke up. His baby blue eyes were strangely clear this time and I sighed, in relief or frustration I didn't know. It was great and all that he wasn't going to be a dumbass, but would that be helpful? Maybe it would have been best that he stayed ignorant.

He spied the wrist cuff on my arm, "She didn't do a good job with you, either?"

"I thought that she would manage to brainwash you. It was obvious from the start that it wouldn't work on me because of my strong mind. The only person she really managed to brainwash is herself," I yawned. Angel was too distraught to read minds right now, hopefully. I'd teach Gazzy how to put up powerful mind blocks later. We probably had time.

Gazzy ran his hand through his sandy blond, short hair, "Ella, do you really think we can live peacefully now?"

"Probably not," I sighed. The Hunters were adept at tracking, and sooner or later they'd find out what really happened, "I've probably bought us all about three years."

"At least I'll get three more years, then," Gazzy smiled wistfully. A small, impossible hope sprung up out of his smile.

My brow furrowed, "Maybe they won't find us."

"If they do, I want you to run away with Angel. I only weigh you two down," Gazzy said forcefully, "You are _not_ to stay. Promise me."

"I promise," I lied easily. My training as a Hunter was back in full force, as was my protective instinct. I wasn't going to let Gazzy die. If I had to, I'd _force_ him to run off with Angel. It wouldn't be hard. I could manipulate anyone.


	24. School Enrollment

**No! This is NOT the end! Definitely not!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

The day of the explosion, I had taken about two hundred in cash from the Flock money jar. I also had one thousand since for every Hunting job we get five hundred. I was paid in advance.

With a little mind control from a very rich man, Angel convinced him to buy us a nice house with a large backyard. I didn't feel too bad about it. He was the owner of a large, nationwide business and there was some new scandal about abused animals every year.

I used the two hundred dollars to buy us new clothes that would be acceptable in modern day society, used one hundred of it on nonperishable food, and spent two hundred on getting us illegal birth certificates and shot records.

At five o'clock in the morning, I roused my Flock. I had a surprise up my sleeve that they were sure to enjoy. I just hoped that Gazzy didn't blow the place sky high.

"What's up?" Gazzy yawned as I shook him awake gently. His blond hair had grown out of it's military styled hairdo and was now a messy skater style. Maybe he'd want to get a haircut. We wouldn't go out to pay for it, of course. We only needed to buy things that we needed. We would cut each other's hair.

"Time for school," I smiled at him wickedly as his eyes popped open, "Try not to blow it sky high."

Gazzy groaned and buried his face in the pillow, "I don't want to go to school."

Oh really? I bet I could get him to change his mind. I curled up next to him and he stiffened. I sighed and my breath tickled his ear.

"Ella?" he asked nervously. Ha! I wasn't doing anything, but he didn't know that.

I hugged him from behind, "Gazzy…"

"Yes?" he was beet red and his heart was hammering. He was _extremely_ jumpy right now. Was I really that good at acting?

Oh, I was the best, "I want…"

"Yes?" he said again uncertainly.

"I want…to go to school," I said evilly. I heard him sigh in relief as he turned to face me.

His face was etched in shock, "You little devil!"

"What?" I asked innocently, "What did you expect?"

"Uh…nothing," he said quickly before jumping up and pushing me out of his room, "I'm getting ready now!"

Angel was outside the room. She had apparently heard everything because she was already dressed in a pink and brown plaid skirt and pink T-shirt, "Gazzy was thinking weird things."

Angel was so cute…and so defenseless. She was vulnerable, and she was my baby now that Max was gone. I wanted her to learn how to defend herself.

"When school is over, do you want to try knife throwing?" I bent down to her height. That was the safest training that I could think of right now, and it was fun too!

She frowned and looked at me, "That sounds dangerous."

I thought of something that Angel would like. Bow and arrow was out. Swordsmanship was out. So was spear throwing. Suddenly, a light bulb went on above my head.

"Pressure points," I smiled at her with inspiration, "I'll teach you them! There are some I know that can make your opponent lose the ability to move their body."

She nodded exuberantly, "Yeah! That sounds like fun!"


	25. School

**I KNOW that the ages are different. I just like Gella! I have to change the ages to make it work!**

**Without Further Adieu,**

We walked the half mile to school because I knew that none of us could handle being in a loud, closed space such as a school bus. No one was thanking me though. They were just complaining about how they could have handled it. I felt like a mom. I felt…like Max. My throat closed up. I tried and failed to swallow as I pictured her face in my mind. We looked like completely different people, except for our eyes, which were the same. Or maybe there were more similarities. The curves of our lips were the same, our skin tone, our frowns, our stubbornness, and the texture of our hair were all the same as well.

I missed her.

I realized this and wished with every fiber of my being that she wasn't dead. I wanted my big sister back. I wanted to help patch up her injuries and tease her about her crush on Dylan or Fang.

No. There was no sense in reflecting on this right now. I forced it out of my mind as I shifted the weight of my backpack onto my other shoulder. Gazzy and I would both be in seventh grade while Angel would be going to third.

"Gazzy, no bombs," I told him sternly, "We don't want to attract any attention to ourselves, understand? We're refugees. Angel, no flying. No responding to people's thoughts."

"Ella, no hunting," Gazzy retorted, forgetting that Angel didn't know. Thankfully, she didn't pick up on the strangeness of his comment and instead inspected a rather weird looking bug on the side of the sidewalk.

"His thoughts are really quick, like a beehive," Angel shared with us, "He's focused on a million different things at once. I like reading different species' minds. They're so different from our own, but the same at the same time."

Leave it to Angel to be the first eight year old to say something as profound as that. When I was eight and looking at a cool bug, I squealed until someone came over to squish it for me.

What was with me today? Reflecting on the past was a hobby for old ladies, not me. Maybe I was just pitying myself. _That_ was a hobby for teenage girls.

It seemed like the schools were right next to each other, so I took Angel's hand as I led her to the elementary school.

"You stay here," I called to Gazzy as Angel broke into a run. I easily kept up with her, though she had the power of a six year old's enthusiasm on her side. I directed her to the office where I had her sit in one of the black chair.

"Hello, and who might you be?" an older woman leaned across the counter and grinned at Angel.

"I'm Angelica Blake," Angel smiled sweetly. There had been some discussion on what our last name would be, but we had settled on Blake purely because it sounded cool.

"Where are your parents?" the old woman asked, looking around and settling on me, seeing as I was the only other person in the room. I saw that her name was Mrs. Cope.

"Our parents granted my adopted brother and I emancipation," I said, not fully knowing if I was using the word correctly, "And little Angel here was placed in our care."

"Oh, but you're so young!" Mrs. Cope said in surprise before lowering her eyes, deeming it not her business. She got up from behind the counter and took Angel's hand, "Why don't I show you to your room?"

"One second," I smiled at Mrs. Cope before pulling Angel slightly away from her.

"If anything, _anything_, feels like Itex is here or if you feel in danger, I want you to run out of here and follow our minds to the middle school. Okay?"

She nodded and hugged me tightly, "Thank you so much, Ella."

I smiled endearingly at her before my Hunter attitude forced the grin off my face, "And have a great day, Angel."

With that, I let Mrs. Cope take Angel's hand and lead her away. I jogged out of the office and ran towards the middle school courtyard. I found Gazzy surrounded by a group of girls, thin and pretty girls.

"So what's _your_ name?" one girl with perfect makeup but a nasally voice giggled.

"Gaz," he answered naturally. We had discovered that Gaz is in fact a name. His name was going to be Gazza, but that just sounded too out of the ordinary.

"That's such a cool name," a brunette complimented him. I couldn't take this flirting anymore.

"Gazzy," I called to him and he came to me, linking his arm through mine.

"You were really unfair this morning, you know that right?" he nudged me teasingly as we walked towards the building.

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to your friends?" I elbowed him. We should make a good impression, or that was what I was trying to tell myself anyway.

I wondered what we were. We remembered all of our time together, but in the brief time that I hadn't remembered I was hung up over Iggy's death. I suppose that wouldn't matter, but I just felt muddled and confused right now. Would he not want me now that he remembered that I'd killed the Flock. Maybe he prefers his girls innocent and airheaded, instead of murderous.

As if he could read my mind like his sister, he smiled, "They're not my friends. I prefer friends that can hold their own in a battle and can still look pretty."

Did he just call me a friend? Well, I guess it's clear now where I stand. I unlinked my arm from his as I went to my locker and loaded everything into it. I already had gotten our schedules so I handed Gazzy his. I took out my new science and reading folders and left.

"Uh, bye Ella!" Gazzy called. I waved my hand half heartedly as I went. I entered my science class and sat down at one of the tables. Soon, a tall boy with black hair and dark blue eyes sat beside me. He held out his hand.

"I'm Logan. You must be the new girl," he smiled. This boy was charming, so I was immediately on red alert. He had the charm of a hunter.

"My name is Ella," I told him and shook his hand firmly. His eyes widened the tiniest bit as he realized that I fit the description of a Hunter.

"Ella?" he checked. I saw that the back of his neck seemed to have a diamond pattern on it, like a snake. He gulped. Oh good, he wasn't a Hunter. He was an escapee.

"Ella Blake," I clarified and looked towards the front of the class. He started writing on it and passed the note to me. His handwriting was dark, like letters in bold. That was a nice contrast to mine which slanted delicately. I decided to humor him and I answered his questions to a degree.

**Why are you here, Ella 'Blake'?**

_You must be a newly escaped mutant to know who I am, Logan._

**You mean that you don't already know?**

_I'm not on a mission._

**Are there more of you?**

I deliberated for a minute before answering, _It depends._

**On what?**

_On what you mean. Mutants, Hunters…_

**Hunters.**

_No. _

**Mutants.**

_Yes._

**Who?**

_I swear, if you rat us out then I'll kill you and whoever you're close to._

**Fine, fine. I wasn't going to do that anyway. **

_There are mutants that will do anything for their own lives._

**Can't we all live at the same time?**

_You press an interesting point._

**Okay. I'll tell you about my companions if you tell me yours.**

_A little girl named Angel and my…friend Gazzy._

**A little boy. My brother. His name is Colt.**

_He a horse mutant?_

**No. He just likes the name. He's part snake, like me.**

_I guessed that._

**Why are you here if you aren't on a mission?**

_Same as you. _

**Hiding?**

_Running._

"Ms. Blake, is my class so boring that you can't even last a day without passing notes?" The science teacher called from the front of the room.

"Logan and I are just sharing notes," I lied. Hopefully, he wouldn't ask to see them.

I'm an excellent liar, so he just cocked his head and shrugged, "I'd prefer that you each had a copy of your own notes, so one of you needs to scan it at the printer in the teacher's lounge. I'll give you a note to go there later."

**Good job. You're good at lying.**

_I'm the best._

**You don't act like a Hunter.**

_You don't act like a snake._

**Good point.**

_I never expected to find another mutant here._

_**I haven't seen another mutant in so long.**_

_There aren't any Itex mutants or spies in Port Angeles. You're lucky to have come here._

_**Do you want 2 hang out sometime? It's kind of weird, only having my brother for a real friend.**_

_Uh yeah. Sure. Want me to bring my family?_

**Yeah. I'll bring Colt. Hey, what are we learning today?**

_We're learning about pollen and stuff. Nothing new._

**What class do you have next?**

_Reading. You?_

**Reading. Good.**

_Same class._

The bell rang and he led me to our next class.

"So what made you decide to not be a Hunter?" he asked me, clearly interested. It's not everyday that you find a tame Hunter.

"I don't really know," I answered, honest for once. The reason…was it because I just didn't want to be a monster anymore?

"Fair enough," he smiled as he held open the door for me. We sat down in chairs beside each other and Logan gave me a piece of blank paper.

"Poetry unit. Today, we're free styling," he said and started writing. I took his lead and wrote my own.

_Roses are red,_

_Violets are blue,_

_My sister is dead,_

_And you will be too._

It was a little depressing, but I was too. Though with one look at Logan, my heart lifted a bit. It's refreshing to know that there are families like Logan, living completely under Itex's radar. It's refreshing to know that we aren't the only ones.

Logan slid his poem to me.

**Ella**

**Laughing sadly as she remembers**

**Lifting the world on her own shoulders, it seems.**

**A beautiful rose in a garden of death.**

Well, it seems I'm not the only one in this class that can write depressing poetry.


	26. Fake

"Hey, you want to eat lunch with me and my group?" Logan invited me once reading class had ended and we were gathering up our stuff. I thought for a moment. What would Gazzy do?

"Can my friend come?" I asked. If his answer was yes, mine would be yes. If his answer was no, I would probably say no.

"Of course," he smiled at me and actually _took_ my school supplies off of my hands and started to carry it. I snatched it back immediately.

"I don't need your help," I hissed and went to my locker since it was right beside the room. I saw Gazzy there and he smiled warmly at me.

"Hey Ella," he greeted me, "How was your day?"

"Fine," I sighed and loaded my stuff into my locker. I saw in my locker mirror that Logan was approaching. His silky black hair was messy and his dark blue eyes were friendly. He was such a strange mutant.

Gazzy gripped my arm tightly, "A mutant's approaching at three o'clock."

"I know," I rolled my eyes as Logan leaned against the lockers beside me, "Snake, this is Gazzy. Gazzy, this is Snake."

"What kind of name is Snake?" Gazzy scoffed, but trusted my judgment. He backed off.

Logan snickered at us, "What kind of name is Gazzy? Well, my name is Logan."

Gazzy studied Logan and apparently wrote him off as undesirable. He grabbed my hand and started to drag me away, "C'mon Ella. Let's go."

I slipped out of his grip, "What the heck, Gazzy? I was going to hang with Sn-Logan."

He looked offended, though I hadn't said anything insulting, "You want to hang out with _that guy_? Why do you want to hang out with him?"

"He's nice," I pointed out. Logan had a nice demeanor, one almost like a human's. It was like he's never had to fight for his life, "Do you want to hang with us?"

My speech patterns had already changed to match my environment. I was like a chameleon, of sorts.

Gazzy shook his head and gave me a half hearted smile, "I'll pass. I'll be coming to watch you train Angel after school, though."

"Cool," I nodded, though it was obvious already that he would come. He _lived_ with us. What else would he do? I headed back to Logan and he led me to the cafeteria. We sat down at a small and empty table and I opened my packed lunch in a paper bag.

"Is your sandwich really cut up into little dinosaurs?" Logan snickered and pointed at a certain item in what I was now sure was _not_ my lunch. I must have given Angel the wrong one.

I stood up from the table and reclosed the lunch bag, "I'm going to the elementary school. I have to give this to Angel."

He stood up beside me and gave me a crooked smile, "I'll come too. Not because you need my help for some reason, but because I want to go."

"Smart boy," I gave him a light punch on the shoulder and he winced. Oops.

We walked out of the school with our lunches as if we were eating in the courtyard, but then continued to the elementary school. We walked calmly to the office when I heard it. Angel was screaming. I threw open the door to see two adults restraining her from running out.

"What do you think you're doing?" I asked in a quiet but menacing voice. The sighed in relief and let Angel run to me. Was my information incorrect and there were really Itex spies here?

"Angelica tried to run away, but of course we wouldn't let that happen," Mrs. Cope said politely before sitting back behind the counter.

I bent down to Angel's height and calmed her down, "Angel. It's okay. I'm here."

"Th-there's a boy. A mutant. He ran up to me. I tried to do what you told me but they wouldn't let me go," she whispered in my ear. Immediately, I relaxed.

I chuckled in her ear, "It's okay. The mutants are cool. I've made friends with one of them and the other is his brother. Now, if you see anyone _other_ than them…"

She nodded and hid behind me as she surveyed Logan. I talked to the office workers, "I'm sorry if she caused you any inconvenience. This won't happen again."

In my head, I gave Angel a different talk, _the next time it happens, hop the fence at the playground and come running. Don't let anyone see you unless you have no choice._

She nodded and told Mrs. Cope, "I'm really sorry. I just got so scared and wanted Big Sis."

Mrs. Cope smiled kindly yet stupidly, "Oh, it's alright sweetie. Just don't let it happen again."

I handed Angel her lunch and she reached inside her backpack that she had managed to grab in her haste to run away. She handed me my lunch bag. I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before leaving with Logan trailing behind me. I heard the bells ring at our school and started to run, but Logan held me back.

"Eat on the way," he instructed me. I nodded and started to feast as we walked. Logan reached into his lunchbox and did the same. By the time we finished, we were standing right in front of the classroom, had our stuff, and were ten minutes late.

We entered the math classroom meekly and the teacher greeted us with an indifferent stare, "You two are excused. I heard about what happened at the elementary school. I hope the little brat gets punished."

Oh no, he did _not_ just say that. My eyes flared, "Says the man who was a problem student and once destroyed the entire boy's bathroom in grade seven. And says the man who _didn't get punished for it_ because he was the principal's son."

"How did you know that?" Mr. Varner looked stricken as he looked at me with slight fear. I sat down in an empty seat near the front.

"I do my research," I loaded my supplies into the desk space and looked at him expectedly, "Now, what are we learning today?"

He walked around and slapped four worksheets on my desk, two more than everyone else had. The concept was trivial to me, though, so I finished them (with my work shown) before anyone else. I was determined to show this teacher up. No one calls Angel a brat.

Apparently, Gazzy was in my class and had the same idea, "Mr. Varner, since you were divorced three times because your wives couldn't stand you, do you have time sometime next week after school to tutor me?"  
"No," he snapped and the rest of the class giggled, "Why don't you ask your _oh so smart_ sister to tutor you?"

"You mean the one that you _called a brat_, or the one sitting in your classroom?" Gazzy asked, hostile. Mr. Varner seemed to understand the situation a bit more, and he developed the good sense to ignore us for the most part. With my work done, I took a small nap.

"Is my class too boring for you to stay up?" something came flying towards my head and I deflected it, seeing that it was a paper ball.

"Why yes, it is." I heard Logan snicker, loud enough for the whole room to hear.

"I like the new kids," I heard some girl laugh. It looks like we've made a name for ourselves already, though I'm not sure if that was good or not. The teacher gave up and actually left the classroom. Logan slid a picture towards me.

It had his face, what must have been his brother's face, Gazzy, Angel, me drawn in cartoon style around the edges like a border, and in the middle in bold and capitol letters were the words: **MUTANTS 4EVER!**

I smiled at it and slid it into one of my folders. I was going to keep that.


	27. Hunters

School ended shortly and without distraction, as neither Gazzy nor Logan was in my next three classes. There was a nice girl named Lissa, though. She seemed a bit pushy, but overall very nice.

I slammed my locker door shut and smiled at Gazzy, who had gotten out of his grumpy mood. Finally. I had figured out why he didn't like Luke, the wonderfully handsome gentleman.

Gazzy was jealous.

That had lifted my spirits considerably. I didn't have to worry about the temporary awkwardness between us. I didn't have to worry about the girls who flocked around Gazzy like a fan club. He felt the same way as me, and that's all that mattered.

I think that I'd like to start over with him. I wanted to have a normal relationship, this one not started while I was trying to kill him. Already, my memories of the Hunters were fading, my dreams less vivid. The urges to kill were manageable. I could just be Ella Blake, a normal mutant girl with a crush.

I'd tell him so later, and I was sure that he'd agree. I'd just be Ella and he'd be Gazzy, not the Gasman and not my target. I could get used to this train of thought.

"C'mon," I smiled at him warmly as he closed his locker and I took his hand. His baby blue eyes widened in surprise at my bold move, but I ignored it. I pulled him through the hallways and he let me.

"We have to go get Angel," he reminded me, as if I would've forgotten. Maybe I would've, actually. This was better than when I first got my wings.

"Yeah, sure," I laughed and we trekked over to the elementary school, where our angelic little girl was waiting on the playground, playing with Colt.

Colt was pushing little Angel on the swings as she begged him to go higher, and he complied. Through their high pitched giggles, they were carrying a conversation about a frozen yogurt place that Colt loved to go to.

I stood about twenty feet away from Angel's swing, directly in front of her. As she reached the peak of her swing, I shouted, "Jump!"

She separated from the swings and dove straight at me. I didn't prepare myself in time, thinking that it would take longer for her to reach me, and she crashed into my stomach. We both fell to the ground, me groaning and Angel squealing in delight.

"That was awesome!" Angel cried out and raised her arms in ecstasy, "Colt! Did you see that?"

"I saw!" Colt trotted up and lifted Angel off of me, "That was amazing! Like a bird!"

Of course, we all had to snicker at that. Who knew that ten year olds could have such great senses of humor?

"Nice save," a smooth voice said from behind me and I moved my head ever so slightly to see Luke. His black hair was tousled ever so slightly and he had lipstick on his cheekbone. I'd have to interrogate him later on who his girl was.

"Of course. I'm perfect," I shrugged and held out my hand to him. I was still on the ground, covered by mulch, "Now help me up, Snake."

He yanked me up so fast that I stumbled (it seems that my Hunter training has left me as well) and fell into his chest. In surprise, his arms closed around me. I looked up and blushed in embarrassment. This was awkward.

"I can't take this anymore," Gazzy said and stomped off, going in the wrong direction. He shoved his baseball cap to the ground and kept walking. I shoved myself away from Luke.

I covered my mouth and blinked. Oh god. What Gazzy saw…weren't just two friends accidently bumping into each other. He saw his maybe-girlfriend embracing some other dude.

"I'll watch Angel," Luke promised me and gave me a small shove in Gazzy's direction, "Go."

"Thank you," I said fervently and took off running. Gazzy had taken off as fast as he could in the direction of town, so I also had to dodge people on my way to him. Finally, my training kicked in and I did some pretty awesome parkour. I flipped through the air, launched myself off the frame of a metal bench, and landed on top of a green trash can. As soon as I steadied myself, I would start running again. I slid under two people carrying a sofa and ran through the busy streets at a green light.

Finally, I saw Gazzy's spiky hair. He was waiting on the sidewalk. A sign said that the light would turn and everyone could cross the street in seventeen seconds.

I pushed through the crowd, seeming impossibly slow, until I reached him. I grabbed his gray windbreaker and yanked him around.

"Ella?" Gazzy asked in bitter surprise, sure that I had just turned him down. I didn't even bother slapping him for his stupidity.

I crashed my lips to his angrily. For the first ten seconds, he didn't react, but then he wrapped his arms around my waist and gave him. Some people clapped, but we paid them no mind.

At last, I broke away and took heaving gasps, needing air.

"You chose me?" Gazzy asked me desperately.

"You're an idiot," I stared into his eyes and tousled his blonde hair, "There was never a choice to begin with. He's just a friend. You're the person that I want to be with. For…forever."

"Why didn't you say something?" He asked me, the depth of his emotion clear on his face. He was confused and surprised, but most of all…in love.

"I wanted to be normal. I wanted to start over. I want to go on dates and go to the park and get ice cream and pizza. I wanted a normal relationship with you, one that we could build off of," I told him, my voice thick. I didn't think that this would happen. How could I have known?

"Then we'll do that," Gazzy promised me, "We'll go to the park and get ice cream tomorrow. We'll get pizza. We'll do anything you want, just let me be with you."

"O…okay. That sounds good," I nodded and hugged him tightly, as if I would never, ever let go.

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: THIS IS NOT THE END. JUST ON HIATUS. DON'T THINK IT CAN GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS? WRONG. THE CHAPTER CONTINUES HERE.**

The mood was somber in the recreation hall of Itex's sixty third building. The lights were off, the room lit only by candles to hide the Hunters' tears.

Ada's body was laid out on a coffin, her body bandaged up neatly for the occasion. She looked at rest, as if she was sleeping. The Hunters were sad, of course, that she had died. Moments before her end, she had taken the initiative to join the group. It was through Ella that they had bonded.

Ella…she didn't get a coffin. Saw was kneeling before a table with Ella's picture on it. The picture was of Ella, marveling her wings and posing for the camera. That picture had been sent to promote winged mutants. Tears slipped down Saw's face and small sobs escaped her. As emotionless as she tried to be, Ella had been like a little sister to her. Saw had protected her against the others and trained her when others weren't looking. They had been so close, and a bomb had taken away not only her life, but her body. She wouldn't even get a burial.

Leech slowly advanced and stood before the table. He put a gloved hand on Saw's shoulder and his own tears hit the floor, each letting out a small _ping_ upon impact.

"It's not fair," Monyka cried and put her head in her hands. One of her legs and her arm was broken, so she was confined to a wheelchair. She hardly noticed, because of one thought: Ella had it worse. Monyka had trouble keeping her form. Her hair changed colors, as did her skin, and some would say that she usually looked more like a tiger than human. Ella was her best friend, her only real friend.

Ella had been family to all of them. She had strived to be her own person, to outshine her sister. She had succeeded. The Flock had been killed, except for Nudge who was being held in hibernation in the lower levels, all thanks to Ella. She had done everything she could, but still in the end…failed.

The door burst open with a large crack, causing them all to jump. A small girl that looked about twelve stood there confidently, a black outline against the light.

It was Leech, of course, who asked the obvious, "Who are you?"

"My name is Aikia. That's Greek, in case you wanted to know. I've been sent here to replace…Ada? Ava? It doesn't matter. She's dead, right? She won't mind," Aikia switched on the lights and surveyed her new team in disgust, "Wow. You guys are weak. People die. Get over it. My sources say that Ada wasn't even that strong."

"We are not mourning Ada, _Aikia_," Saw snarled and started to transform. Her eyes went black and her hair started to float. Her skin went deathly pale and her claws sharpened, "So watch your mouth."

Aikia noticed the small altar with the photo, "_Ah_, you're sad for that girl. _Her_, I can understand. Ella Martinez. Maximum's sister. Exceptionally rare ability. She died, too. Pity."

"Why are you here?" Monyka asked as her face shifted back into her usual form. Hazel hair fell to her shoulders and a scar ran down her cheek. She just couldn't seem to get rid of that one scar, no matter what form she chose.

"Cripple," Aikia spat, looking down on her in contempt, "Well, I said that I came here to replace Ava, so I'm a Hunter now. The Director chose me herself. I also came here bearing your new mission."

"And that is?" Leech prodded, he being the one most able to speak.

"There are two escaped enhanced projects located in Port Angeles, Washington. Their names are Luke and Colt, both snake mutants. We have permission to kill," Aikia smirked as she picked out their mutual weakness, "I'm sure that Ella would have wanted you to keep working, striving to be your best, and complete the mission."

Her words struck true in every Hunter's heart.

"Monyka, stop playing around and shape shift so that you have a form that's healed." Saw commanded immediately, wiping the tears from her eyes. She had turned back to normal, now.

"Impossible," named shift shaper muttered, "I can only shift to a smaller size to have a healed body. If I do that, I can't fight."

"You won't be fighting," Leech informed her, his voice thick, "You'll have Ella's old job. You infiltrate and lead them to a trap. Saw, you do what you did before and assist."

Aikia was disgruntled. She thought that she could easily take control of this bunch of wimps. _All in due time_, she reminded herself, _They'll be so shocked to learn that Ella is alive –and a traitor- that it'll be easy to take the reins._


End file.
